Asteroid Blues
by doctorwho29
Summary: Dr. Wily has been defeated twice but a new threat is looming on the horizon.
1. The Awakening

**Hello there everyone. We are at last embarking on a journey that's been cooking in my head for quite some time. It's an original story taking place between Mega Man 2 and Mega Man 3. I've taken inspiration from other Mega Man sources and am crafting what I hope will be a fun tale. Certain details are remarkably slow in coming so we'll discover certain things together. Let's begin!**

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Chapter 1: The Awakening

The sun blazed hot and bright upon the Amazon Rainforest. The birds sang their songs as they cleaned their feathers, pecked around for food, and fluttered throughout the canopy. A family of monkeys was sitting in a tall tree cleaning each other's fur. The smallest monkey watched as one of the birds landed on their branch. He was enthralled by the colorful plumage and began reaching out to touch it. The bird glanced at the little money disdainfully before turning away and fluttering further down the branch. The tiny monkey laughed and crawled out on the branch trying to touch the bird. The colorful bird shrieked at the tiny monkey and it almost fell out of the tree as he watched his prey fly away.

As the monkey was climbing back onto the branch, the entire tree shuddered. The parents scurried to save their child from falling as the tree shook again. Smoke was rising in the distance and the ground was now beginning to rumble in earnest. The monkeys leapt to another tree and then another trying to escape this strange envision. Not too far away a tree began to vibrate wildly before toppling to the ground. Others soon followed suit and animals of all sorts ran for their lives as their homes were destroyed.

The source of this chaos was a crew of humans and their large machines. There were bulldozers, wood chippers, large trucks, and other construction vehicles. A large ugly swatch of land devoid of vegetation had already been cut through the forest and there was no sign of stopping. At the head of the pack walked a small red robot with a large pronged blade on his head.

"We should slow down" Cut Man shouted to the foreman over the noise of the machines. "The jungle is getting denser all the time and we don't want to do more damage than necessary."

"Time is money" the foreman responded "The faster we get this land clearer, the less money we spend and the bigger the profit to us."

"Money isn't everything you know."

"Try living as a human for a while and then say that."

"I don't think I'm cut out for that."

"I told you to knock it off with the puns!"

"I'm sorry, Mr. Vargas! It slipped out."

"Robots…" Mr. Vargas said with a shake of his head "I still don't see why we need you here. Work went on perfectly well before you robot masters came about."

"There's always room for improvement and I am an expert on deforestation."

"You were programmed. I've been doing this for years."

"Then we can learn from each other, can't we?"

"Ah let's just focus on the job."

The work continued carefully but efficiently as the jungle grew denser and darker. Cut Man seemed to be growing ever more uneasy the deeper they went. He kept calling more stops as he would walk ahead and scout out the terrain. Mean while Mr. Vargas' patience was wearing thin.

"What's going on? Are you going to let us do our job or not?"

"According to your employer, my job is to make sure your job is safe as well as efficient. Well something doesn't feel right here."

"Feel right? What does that mean?"

"Exactly what I say, something is making my systems feel a bit off. Almost like…I don't know… an electrical interference."

"Electrical…we're in the middle off the stinking jungle! Not even natives live out here. I think you've finally blown a fuse on us."

"I'll have you know that I'm paying very careful attention to my maintenance…"

"Oh just put a sock in it" the frustrated foreman said as he took a final drag on his cigarette and flung it at Cut Man's feet. The disgusted robot picked it up and took it to the proper waste receptacle. Meanwhile, Mr. Vargas grabbed a machete and hacked his way through the brush to inspect things for himself.

"I knew it, there's nothing here. Robots…who needs them? I think that Camp has the right idea. I just wish we had more like him here…ahhhh!"

His tirade turned into a scream as the ground gave way under his feet and he fell right through it. Everyone came running to see what had made him shout and gathered around the hole with mixed fascination and horror.

"Hey boss" one of the workers called out "Are you alright?"

"Yeah…yeah I think so. There's a lot of dirt down here and that cushioned my fall."

"All the same" Cut Man replied "We need to get the med crew down there. Just hang on while we get some rope."

Soon, Cut Man and several of the men had climbed down the hole with powerful lanterns and first aid kits. They found themselves in some sort of tunnel. Mr. Vargas was sitting against a big rock and lighting another cigarette.

"Those things really aren't good for you, you know" the head of the medical unit said to him

"Hey I could have died just now. Call it stress relief."

Meanwhile, Cut Man was examining the tunnel. "I don't think this is just a cave. These walls almost look like they were carved."

"What?" Mr. Vargas said as he tried to stand up against the wishes of those tending him "Did we discover some kind of temple or something?"

"Possibly, I'm going to scout ahead."

Cut Man walked down the tunnel with one of the lanterns and spied a large cavern up ahead. He path was filled with thick roots and he was having a hard time climbing through them.

"Just chop them" an impatient voice shouted "We're cutting these trees down anyway."

'"Oh yeah and risk a cave in? You've already proven how obviously sturdy the place is, Mr. Vargas."

"Ah…good point."

Cut Man finally broke through the wall of roots and gasped in amazement. He was indeed standing in some sort of shrine with a large blue crystal on a pedestal. It was glowing faintly and made Cut Man's inner parts tingle with energy. There were also strange statues all over the place. They were shaped similar to a squat hourglass with four short legs, a spike on their head, and a single red eye with a curve like a smile under it. The far wall of the room had an outline in the wall like a closed door but no visible way of opening it.

"Holy Catfish!" Mr. Vargas said as he pushed his way through the roots "It's the Mother Lode!"

"Yeah.." Cut Man said in an awestruck voice "This place is amazing. What is it? Who built it? What…"

"Who cares about any of that junk when the mother of all jewels is right in front of us?" Before anyone could react, he was already approaching the large blue gem. He ran his hand over its surface and smiled "It's kind of tingly. Wait, did anyone else hear that?"

The little statues around the room were beginning to move and the red eye in their front was glowing. "They're not statues" Cut Man shouted shock "They're robots!"

As if on cue, the closest one bad a dull beeping sound before falling onto it's back. An opening at the bottom dislodged a small orb that exploded when it hit the ground. Mr. Vargas and Cut Man had to jump away to not get blown up.

"Cut that out!" Cut Man shouted "I don't want to criticize too much but bombs in an unstable underground space aren't exactly smart."

"They're not listening" someone screamed as more bombs flew. The men who had crawled into the crystal chamber were now rushing to leave it while Cut Man engaged the robots in battle. As a robot leaned back to launch a bomb, he launched a Rolling Cutter into the opening. The bomb was triggered early and the robot was disabled.

"I love you Cut Man" Mr. Vargas said as the red robot defeated another enemy by kicking one of its own bombs back at it.

"Aw, that's a slice thing to say"

"I love you a little less"

"The puns aren't that bad" he said as he took down another little robot "These things aren't that tough really. Kind of like an ancient Met."

"They can't actually be ancient can they?"

"It certainly looks that way."

"That's impossible…isn't it?"

Before Cut Man could answer, they were both distracted by a rumbling sound and dust falling from the ceiling. The door at the far end of the room was sliding downwards and something human-shaped was standing in the opening. Cut Man took a step backwards and found that Mr. Vargas was already behind him. The being stepped into the light revealing what seemed to be a person with light skin and purple hair that stopped just above the shoulders. They wore a green skintight suit under purple armor that covered the chest, shoulders and part of his back. The boots were made of the same purple metal as were the gauntlets that covered the wrists. The hands were white and upon the head rested a crown resembling metal oak leaves. The most distinguishing feature however was a fan of feathers on the lower back giving the strong impression of a peacock's tail.

"Is that a robot too?" Mr. Vargas asked in a small voice

"I think so; it certainly looks like a robot master."

"It is such a rude word" the being said in a calm voice as the eyes opened with a green glow. The glow faded as the robot continued "My name is Juno and I am male."

"How do you know our language?" Cut Man asked

"I am fitted with a universal translator. Now my question for you is who you are and what are you doing here."

"I'm Cut Man"

"You can call me Mr. Vargas and I'm in deforestation. My job brought us here."

"Deforestation?" Juno said in shock as his green eyes grew wide "Does that mean that you would destroy the beautiful forests and jungles?"

"Hey it's called progress. I can't stop it."

"I doubt you would try. What year is it?"

Both Cut Man and Mr. Vargas were confused by the question but Cut Man said "It's 200X. Why?"

Juno closed his eyes and furrowed his brow "It would seem that in all this time humans have not changed. They still seek to destroy the balance of nature. I must examine this world of 200X and decide mankind's fate."

"Decide mankind's what now?" Cut Man said "Robots can't hurt humans."

"Who came up with that ridiculous rule?"

"Oh dear"

"Now are you going to stand aside?"

"Not if you're going to hurt people I'm not" Cut Man said as he struck a fighting pose.

"I suppose I could do with a warm up" Juno said with closed eyes and a polite smile. "I have been asleep for sometime after all."

Juno raised one of his arms and made a fist. That fist began to glow and transformed into a buster cannon. Cut Man barely had time to force Mr. Vargas to the ground as a plasma ball flew above them and tore right through the root system blocking the tunnel. Juno looked distressed and said "This is not a good place to fight. Let's take this outside."

With incredible speed, he approached Cut Man and Mr. Vargas. He put his hands on them and they teleported back into the jungle. He pulled Cut Man into a standing position and said "Stand aside if you do not wish to be hurt human"

Mr. Vargas did not have to be told twice and was already running to rejoin his men. Cut Man was going to try to reason with Juno but the ancient robot was already firing more plasma bolts. Cut Man dodged these and hurled a Rolling Cutter. Juno jumped over this and pulled the tail from his back. He held the feathers like a fan and waved it. Cut Man was knocked to the ground by the gust of wind.

"Is this the extent of your powers, Cut Man? I did not expect to win this quickly."

"I just…wait a minute…you're flying "

"Indeed. My brethren and I have mastery over the elements and air is mine to control."

"There are more of you?"

"Certainly and we will purge this earth if we deem it necessary."

"Yeah that is not happening. Rolling Cutter!"

Juno swooped under the blade and simply sidestepped it on its way back. "You have performed the same technique twice. Is that the extent of your powers?"

"Uh…maybe."

"This is not worth my time." He returned the peacock fan to his back and said "If you are foolish enough to stand in my way again, I will regrettably be forced to destroy you. Farewell!"

A whirlwind stirred the leaves and kicked up a dust storm while Juno vanished into the sky. Cut Man stared in stunned shock at where the odd robot had used to be before being snapped out of it by the voice of Mr. Vargas.

"What was that? You let him get away."

"I don't think I can cut it. I need to call Dr. Light."


	2. Mega Man joins the Fire Brigade

**This chapter couldn't make up it's mind on what it wanted to be lol. The beginning was a very late addition and originally Mega Man was going to stop some criminals or something. I like the finished version and I hope you will as well.**

 **itanimulli: I'm so glad you like my story so far. Your kind review pushed me to keep working and I'm sad it took me this long. I actually have written other Mega Man stories if you care to check out my profile page here on . My dream (one of many) is to write my way through the whole classic Mega Man series one day. A tall order but a fun one when I can stay on task.  
**

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Chapter 2: Mega Man Joins the Fire Brigade

"Come on Jimmy! Hit it out of the park!" shouted Rock Light, otherwise known as Mega Man. Today he was in street clothes watching a group of local kids playing baseball.

Jimmy flashed Rock a quick smile before returning his concentration to batting. The pitch was thrown and Jimmy swung. It wasn't a homerun but it did make it into the outfield. Jimmy ran as did Russell on second base. He reached third right as a player on the other team picked up the ball. Russell made a split second decision and made a break for home plate. Many were shouting for him to stay put but Rock wasn't among them.

"You can make it! Slide for it!"

The ball was in the air, the catcher's mitt was ready to receive it; it was going to be a very close call. Russell hit the dirt and slide into home plate right as the ball was caught and brought down for an out. There was a tense moment while the ref pondered the situation before calling out "Safe!"

The crowd went wild and Rock shouted his praise along with the rest. "That was awesome Russell, great job!"

Soon the game was over and everyone one was mingling to discuss the game. All the kids wanted to talk to Rock at least once. "You're so cool" Russell was saying

"You are too. That slide was really impressive."

"Maybe I could teach it to you and you could use it when saving the world!"

"Well I hope that the world won't need saving again anytime soon. However, Doctor Light has been doing some upgrades. Among other things, I'm a bit more flexible now so who knows?"

"Yeah it would be so cool! Anyway, I need to get going."

"Actually, I think I'll be heading home myself. See you guys later!"

The kids waved Rock off and he turned toward Light Labs with a smile. He strolled through the park and emerged into the city in short order. He especially enjoyed today because it was becoming harder to take leisurely strolls without being mobbed. Bringing down Dr. Wily twice had made him very famous and reporters and fans alike enjoyed tracking him down. Still he loved hanging out with the kids and somehow the fandom wasn't as bad coming from them.

"Then again, I'm built to be like a child so maybe I'm biased" he said with a chuckle

He was broken out of his thoughts by the sound of screams and sirens. His happy mood instantly evaporated when he looked towards the noise and spied a large cloud of black smoke several streets over. Rock ran with all haste to the source of the smoke and discovered an apartment building in a towering blaze.

"What happened?" he asked a nearby fire fighter

"We're not sure. It all happened so quickly and it being an older building just makes it worse."

"Is anyone still inside?"

"We don't think so but it's getting too dangerous to check.

"Too dangerous for a human perhaps but not for me!" He closed his eyes and activated one of his recent upgrades. His body was engulfed in a blue glow and his street clothes were swapped out for his armor and helmet. "Mega Man is on the job."

Before anyone could say another word, he had run right through the flames and into the building. The front hall was a mine field of fire and debris while the air was almost black with smoke. This building was coming down fast and so he'd have to be even faster. He leapt over a pile of burning wood and ran down the first floor main corridor calling out for survivors. As he opened a door to check an apartment, the entire door frame collapsed on top of him. He screamed as he brushed flaming pieces of apartment off of him.

"I'm glad no one saw that. Fire Man and Heat Man I can apparently handle but a little debris…anyway got to keep moving."

\

He made sure there was no one on the first floor and returned to the main hall. The stairs were blocked by debris and he had to work cautiously to clear a path. It was nerve-racking because the whole building could collapse at any time and he had to take it slow. Finally a path was opened and he ran to the next floor. He was very quick but very thorough as he checked every room that wasn't already destroyed. Soon he was on the top floor where only a few apartments remained accessible.

Mega Man gazed around through the haze of heat and smoke. He had to be sure there were no more people to be rescued before pulling out. He thought he heard a cry from down the corridor but simultaneously heard a loud creaking from above. He looked up to see a flaming roof beam come dislodged directly above him. On instinct, he raised his buster and blasted the beam to ash and splinters. He was safe for the moment it was a sign he had to get a move on.

He heard the call again and ran. He approached a closed door with lots of smoke pouring through the cracks around it. "Hello? Is anyone in there?"

"Yes" a weak voice called out "We're" the voice coughed and went on "we're trapped. The ceiling…" more coughing drowned out the rest of the sentence.

` "Don't say anything else! I'm coming in." The door was jammed so he kicked in down. A black cloud of smoke poured out but Mega Man's robotic eyes adjusted well. Part of the ceiling had indeed collapsed leaving a barrier of flaming wood dividing the room. He heard more coughing, weaker this time, and realized he had to hurry. Remembering the game, he backed up and ran toward the debris. He dropped to the floor and slid like a baseball player through a gap in the wood.

"Wow that actually worked. Where are you?"

"We're in the bedroom!"

He ran to the back of the apartment and saw a coughing man and an unconscious little boy. "Help him first please."

"I'm getting you both out of here!" He slung the boy over his shoulder and asked his father "Can you walk?"

"Yeah I think so"

"Then let's go! We have to be quick"

He used his free hand to blast through the debris in the living room and the pair ran through the resulting gap. They heard a rumbling of collapsing wood behind them but didn't turn to see exactly what happened. Mega Man showed the best path to take through the wreckage and the man did his best to stay in his footsteps. Mega Man suddenly fell right through the weakened floor.

"No!" the father screamed

"It's ok" Mega Man had managed to grab the edge with a free hand "I need you to take him"

The man pulled his unconscious child from Mega Man's shoulder and cradled him in his arms. Mega Man pulled himself up and rolled out of the way as the floor started to give way again. Finally he and the father found a stronger patch of floor but there was now a large gap in their path.

"This place is *cough* coming *cough cough* down."

"We're going to make it!"

Mega Man was searching frantically and suddenly spied what he was looking for: a fallen roof beam. He grabbed the large piece of wood and dragged it swiftly to the gap and bridged it.

"Cross quickly!"

"Is it *cough* safe?"

"It's safer than waiting to be burned up. Let's go!"

They ran across and down the stairs while the building continued to collapse. There was a terrible crash as the final flight of stairs completely collapsed. There was no way down to the ground level.

"The fire escape was destroyed by fire. That's kind of messed up" Mega Man said

"What are we going to do?"

"This!" Mega Man replied as he blasted the wall next to them and created an opening to the outside world. "We're not that far from the ground, we can jump."

"Jump!"

"Look there's a dumpster we can jump to. It's the only chance at this point."

"Ok. Here goes nothing"

Mega Man let the man go first and smiled when he landed on the dumpster lid, a little wobbly but safe. Mega Man jumped directly to the ground and took the child from his arms so he could climb down. Together they ran down the alley and away from the inferno behind them. After traversing a safe distance, the duo turned towards the street and emerged in sight of the rescue workers and assembled crowds.

The man seemed at the end of his strength and collapsed to the ground. Fortunately, a medical crew was already on the way. "Is he alright?"

"I think so Mega Man" one of the medics replied "They both took in a lot of smoke but it looks like they'll pull through."

"I certainly hope so"

The man coughed and opened his eyes "Thank you Mega Man" he said weakly but sincerely "Todd and I owe you our lives."

"I'm just glad I was in time."

"So am I"

He was just now becoming aware of the cameras in his face and the reporters firing their questions "How did you come across the fire?" "Were there any casualties?" "Can you tell us what happened in there?" "Does your involvement imply enemy robots started the blaze?" "What about Dr. Wily?" "Was it a trap for you?" "Are you working for the fire department now?" "How about the police?"

"Everyone please; not even my brain can listen to all those questions at once. I have no idea how this fire started. I was originally at a baseball game in the park. I saw the smoke and came to offer my help. I met no other robots in there, just a man and his son who were somehow missed by the fire department but I do not blame them in the least. Things were getting intense in there. I'm just glad to have been able to help. That's all I ever do, be it a foiling a grand world conquering scheme or stopping a connivance store robbery. I help where I can. Now if you don't mind, I'm going home."

More questions were asked but most of the crowd was kind enough to part and let him through. He shifted back into his street clothes and hit the streets. Eventually he was walking up the path to Light Labs and feeling very glad to be home. Roll met him at the door and attacked him with a feather duster.

"I saw the news report. It's awesome that you were able to help but you could be more considerate of tracking soot on my clean floors!"

"Sorry. It slipped my mind."

"Boys" she said in frustration "Always getting so dirty."

Before he could respond, Dr. Light came running. "There you two are. Cut Man has just contacted us from his rainforest job."

"Cool" Rock said

"No not cool. I think you'll want to hear what he has to say although I have a feeling everyone will know soon enough."


	3. Battle in the Ruins

Chapter 3: Battle in the Ruins

"I'm telling you, it was like something out of a movie" Cut Man said Dr. Light drove the jeep through the jungle. He, Rock, and Roll had flown down as soon as possible to examine the strange chamber the deforestation team had discovered.

"And you have no idea where this Juno is now?" Dr. Light asked

"None"

"Dr. Light" Rock cut in "Does this have anything to do with those notes I found in Dr. Wily's Castle?

"Possibly, we really don't know anything about this threat."

"Maybe they aren't really a threat. Maybe we can reason with this Juno. Besides, we don't even know his plans."

"Those are admirable sentiments Rock but as the old saying goes we should hope for the best but plan for the worst."

"Speaking of the worst" Roll chimed in "I bet this is Dr. Wily. He tried that pathetic alien ploy last time around; maybe this is him carrying it on."

"I doubt it Roll" Cut Man said "Like I said, this temple or whatever it is was old, real old. I mean maybe Wily can fake that but if so he did one heck of a job."

"There is also the question of that crystal" Dr. Light said "It sounds like some sort of energy element but I've never heard of anything like this. Of course, I'll have to see it up close to know more but based on what we do know how could Albert create such a thing with his resources?"

"Well I'm still not putting anything past him?" Roll said stubbornly

"Anyway" Cut Man said "I'm not entirely sure what to do. The local government will want to claim this so I'm glad you were able to get here so quickly before anyone tries to swoop in and make things a greedy, political mess."

"Such a negative outlook Cut Man" Dr. Light responded "However, you may be right. Are we nearing the site?"

"Yes. It's just a little further…here we are."

Dr. Light parked the jeep and gazed into the hole in the ground. "Fascinating. I'm no archeologist but this certainly does not look like modern work Roll."

"Well ok."

"I don't suppose I'll learn anything just standing here." Rock and Roll watched nervously as Dr. Light took hold of the rope and expertly abseiled into the pit.

"Wow" Rock said "Who knew?"

"What?" his creators voice echoed up toward him "Why so surprised? There's life in this old dog yet."

"Not the term I'd use but ok" Rock said as he descended into the pit followed by his sister and Cut Man

"This place is incredible. We need to get a proper team in here sometime."

"Cut Man, you certainly did a number on these robots" Rock said as he studied the small bots that had tried to defend the gem.

"I guess I am a cut above the rest."

"That one was just sad" Rock replied

"Especially after what this Juno character did to you" Roll added

"Now cut that out"

Dr. Light was ignoring all of this and instead was focused on studying the large crystal. "Yes…yes it is indeed a source of energy. Something like this could help the world in many ways."

"What is it powering though?" Rock asked "These robots are wouldn't need that sort of energy and Juno left this place without it just fine."

"Indeed an important question" Dr. Light said as he shined his lantern all around the chamber. Seeing nothing of interest, he approached the door at the end of the room.

"That's where Juno came out" Cut Man said

"That's why it interests me" Dr. Light responded as he passed through the open doorway.

The robots followed and gazed in awe at what seemed to be an ancient control room. Dusty and root covered machines and monitors covered the walls. There was also a stone column with sliding doors still open and machinery attached. "I guess that's where Juno was until we woke him up" Cut Man said

"Most likely" Dr. Light agreed. He looked around the room again and said "Some of this equipment is active. I wonder what its function is."

"Juno said something about a purge" Cut Man said "A purge of the earth is what he said."

"Hmm…I certainly don't like the sound of that. I wonder if I can learn anything from these computers."

He connected his laptop to a terminal and began hacking. Rock asked "Can you read it?"

"Not yet…however Juno had a translator program. I'm hoping this system will as well and I can access it somehow."

"Maybe…maybe we should try to find Dr. Wily. He may know something."

"I would love to work with Albert again but I just don't think…whoops, I don't think that's supposed to happen."

All the monitors had gone dark and a siren was starting to blare. A robotic voice suddenly said "Intruders detected. This unit must be protected. The intruders will be purged on orders of the Master Program."

"I don't like the sound of that" Cut Man said

"I don't like the look of that" Rock said

The others ran to join him at the door. He was pointing to the tunnel they entered through and a red light was now shining in the distance. Said light suddenly began moving closer and the walls vibrated from the movement of whatever was approaching. A hulking mass was becoming discernible as it came into the light: a bulky body was propped on six thick legs and it had long clubs for arms. The light was a single eye in the middle of a spike topped head and it was glaring right at the intruders.

"Just how many robots are in this place?" Cut Man asked

"It's about to be one less" Mega Man said as he manifested his armor. "Come and get me, cave man!"

He blasted it for extra emphasis and charged forward. His only thought was to get this thing away from his family and so he dropped to the floor and slid between the legs. He emerged on the other side just as the giant robot began to turn around on the spot. Mega Man came out of the slide in a crouching position but had to roll to the side as one of the arms came down. The ground shook from the impact and Mega Man had some trouble standing up.

"Maybe it's being powered by this thing" Roll said as she approached the giant jewel. An energy field prevented her from touching it and her attempt caused the giant robot to turn around and swipe at her.

"Leave my sister alone!" Mega Man cried as he peppered it's backside with plasma shots. These left small dents but the robot was already turning back around. It charged toward Mega Man with its arms flailing and pounding the ground. Mega Man did his best to run away from the ramage but he was clipped by one of the arms and slammed into the wall.

"Oh no!" Cut Man exclaimed

"Rock, are you ok?" Dr. Light shouted

"I'm going to beat that thing up" Roll said

"No!" Mega Man shouted as he dodged a beam from the robot's eye "Get out of here while you can."

"I believe we should listen to him" Dr. Light said "He can handle this sort of thing."

"Ok but I'll be ready to cut in if he needs help."

Roll and Dr. Light groaned as they did their best to scale the rope while the robot continued to bash the ground. One particularly wild rampage caused the rope to shake wildly and Roll gave a shout. The robot suddenly turned and blasted the rope with its eye laser and snapped it. Thankfully Dr. Light had barely begun climbing and had a short way to fall. Roll landed with a thud but her durable body held up well. Cut Man however was right near the beam and not only too damage from that but had the farthest to fall.

"Ow, maybe I'm not going to be much help after all."

The mechanical voice boomed from the monitors again "None shall escape. Intruders will be purged."

"I know a certain voice chip I'd like to smash" Roll said

"Roll move!" Mega Man screamed as he jumped in front of her and caught the arm that was about to smash her. He was forced to his knees and had to struggle but managed not to get crushed himself.

"Thanks" she said

Suddenly, Mega Man found his load was a lot lighter. He looked up in confusion as the entire arm fell off. Cut Man was off to the side, battered but triumphant. "I guess I can help some. I saw a clear shot and I took it."

"Awesome, now to deal with the rest of him."

Mega Man saw the other arm slam down as the robot tried to attack him. He ran up the arm and onto the shoulder. There he began to shoot the head and try to wear down the armor. The robot turned its head trying to zap him but Mega Man was already on the other side and moving back down the tunnel.

"You try to blast me but I'm too fast" Mega Man taunted as his enemy turned to face him

Rather than try to catch up, the robot tried a new tactic. The remaining arm shot after him like a rocket. Mega Man, relying more on instinct than actual thought, slid underneath it and shot a round of plasma into exposed joint. Sparks flew from the joint and the whole robot shuddered. Mega Man was already dodging the arm as it came back into position and was pleased to note smoke pouring from other joints in the outer body.

"Looks like you haven't got much steam left in you. Woah…" he dodged another eye beam and then said "Let's take care of that little trick."

He aimed a plasma shot right at the eye and shattered it. The robot flailed around and then charged while constantly pounding the ground with its remaining arm and swerving from side to side. Mega Man found that he had no choice but to slide between the scurrying legs and got a bit battered on his way out but he was safe. He popped up to a kneeling position and peppered the robots backside with more plasma, trying to shoot for the joints and other supposed weak points.

"Wait a minute, why didn't I think of this before?" He jumped to his feet and ran back to the others.

"What's up?" Cut Man asked as Mega Man approached him

"This!" He laid his hand on Cut Man's head and absorbed the Rolling Cutter. "You need to be here to protect the others but I can still cut this beast down to size."

"Oh no one cares when you make puns!"

"Must be something I picked up from you" Mega Man joked back as he ran back to the robot when had finally figured out how to turn back around while blind and not knock into the walls. Mega Man took aim and fired a Rolling Cutter but missed the flailing arm. Thinking fast, he ran forward and ducked under the pumping appendage and fired straight up. The blade disconnected arm from body and he rolled to the side to dodge it as it fell.

"Nice one!" Roll shouted

"Oh dear" Dr. Light said with a deep breath "I thought he was real trouble there."

"Nah, not Mega Man" Cut Man said as the battle continued to rage with the tide still turning in the blue bot's favor "He's a cut above…I mean he's amazing."

"Got it!" Mega Man shouted as a blade cut right through the robot's thick neck and severed head from body. The beast was at its limit; smoke poured from the gaping wounds as it jittered some more and then shut down.

Everyone crowded around Mega Man and congratulated him. "Aw it was nothing."

"My boy, your humility never ceases to amaze me" Dr. Light replied "Now as for leaving this awful place…"

"Well" Mega Man said "Goliath here isn't far from the hole. He'd make a nice ladder that I could jump from and grab some rope from jeep."

"Take that you so called Master Program" Roll said in the general direction of the monitors.

The mechanical voice answered "It matters not. Already my children are on the move and your world is taking notice. Soon the plan will commence."

"Oh dear" Dr. Light said "In that case, it may be best to leave this place and regroup. At least that way our mechanical friend won't know where to send more assasins."

"Right" Mega Man said "Let's do this!"

The plan worked. Mega Man leapt from the remains of the large robot and managed to grab the edge of the hole. In a short time, all where back in the jeep and rapidly making way back to the city.

"It sounds like people are indeed taking notice" Dr. Light said as they flipped through the news stations on the radio. "Everyone is reporting sightings of odd robots showing up around the world."

"That last report described Juno pretty well" Cut Man said "It sounds like he may have his so called brethren with him."

"Quiet everyone" Mega Man said "This sounds interesting."

"In a shocking turn of events, Dr. Albert Wily has just appeared before a local police station. He has one simple message for the world"

A voice clip of Dr. Wily speaking personally followed. It contained only two words: "I surrender."


	4. An Unlikely Alliance

Chapter 4: An Unlikely Alliance

"Thank you for coming Dr. Light" the officer said "He's been asking for you."

"I know and we came as quickly as we could" Dr. Light said as he submitted to the police search.

"Should I really be here as well?" Rock asked as the police force did the best they could to search the small robot for weapons or contraband items.

"It's a sticky situation but Dr. Wily has requested your presence as well. We don't see how it could be of any danger but it's unwise to put anything past this man."

"I promise that Rock and I will be very careful officer."

"Good. If the pair of you would come this way…"

They followed the officer deeper and deeper into the jail until they were outside of a very secure integration room. Agent Stern was standing nearby drinking deeply from a cup of coffee and looking stressed.

"Hello again Doctor" he said when he noticed the pair "We always seem to meet under unpleasant circumstances."

"It would appear so, Agent Stern."

"I hear you guys have been down south."

"Yes, to the site where this all started."

"Whatever this actually is" Rock added

"No one seems to know" Stern said as he turned his attention to the robot "One day a temple or something is found in the rainforest and now we have odd robots showing up everywhere. Many looks like ninjas or something but others are just weird."

"Has anyone been hurt?" Dr. Light asked "I've been trying to keep up with all the news but there's been so little time between one thing and another."

"No one has been killed but there have been some injuries. People, mostly emergency workers like police and military, have tried to engage the robots but the robots always win."

"What have they actually been doing?"

"Mostly stealing electronic junk; the thefts range from top security labs to the corner hardware store."

"Interesting…could they be trying to repair their systems with modern equipment? The station in the jungle seemed in relatively fine order but maybe there are more out there that were less fortunate through the years."

"I don't know anything about that; you'll have to talk to the prisoner for that. I seriously can't believe we're considering listening to him but Wily claims he has valuable information that could help the world."

"Ah that would explain turning himself in!" Rock said "If he really wants to help, he needs to get people to trust him first."

"Trust him…right" Stern said before taking another deep drink from his coffee "Anyway, I shouldn't hold you up nor should I keep the prisoner waiting. Just remember there is security everywhere if anything goes sideways."

"Thank you Agent Stern" Dr. Light replied as he shook Stern's hand

"Yeah thanks" Rock said as he extended his hand as well

Agents Stern returned the handshake and said "Quite a grip kid but I guess that's no surprise. Have fun you two."

He strolled away and the guard opened the door to the interrogation room. Dr. Wily was already seated at the table dressed in prison orange and wearing handcuffs. Apart from the guard leading accompanying Dr. Light and Rock, there were two muscular men standing in the corners of Dr. Wily's side of the room.

"Thomas! Rock! How wonderful of you both to come see me. I must say jail isn't nearly as cheery as TV makes it sound."

Dr. Light sat down and said "Believe me Albert; it gives me no pleasure to see you here."

Dr. Wily replied "I can believe that Thomas, I really can…I mean you converted young Rock here into a warrior purely to bring me to justice but I can believe you take no pleasure from this situation."

"You were reprogramming innocent robots and causing all kinds of mayhem" Rock said, his emotions rising

"Did I actually hurt anyone?"

"You kidnapped a Senator!"

"Technically Quick Man kidnapped a senator and I never actually hurt him."

"You sure almost did when you blasted his chair with your death machine."

"I prefer the term 'Wily Machine' and I was aiming for you, I promise."

"Oh that makes it so much better."

"I'm not sure this is helping anything" Dr. Light cut in

Dr. Wily put his face into his cuffed hands and sighed deeply. He looked up with a sad expression and said "You're right…of course you're right. I just got a little carried away again…as usual."

Rock was stunned. Was this real or a trick? "Your past crimes…you call all of that getting carried away?"

"I suppose it was in a way. Temporary insanity is another way of phrasing it. I just wanted a little fame, a little attention. People only see me as the bad guy no matter what I do. So what did I do? I made them right. I went off the deep and actually became the bad guy. I want to make amends for that. I want to help you save the world."

"Hmm…I suppose turning yourself into the police is consistent with, well, what you said" Rock replied

"Yes. It was also the only way I could think of to make you listen to me and accept my help."

"Albert" Dr. Light said "You said save the world. Is the threat really that serious?"

"I can't say for certain but I have every reason to believe that it could be. A while back, I stumbled across evidence of an ancient breed of robots. Imagine my surprise when further research indicated that they were from outer space."

"Ah that would explain your lame alien trick" Rock cut in "I guess your research was the inspiration."

"Well yes but I wouldn't use the word lame."

"What was the point in trying to make me believe you were an alien?"

"It was fun ok. You may have noticed that I can, at times, have a flair for the dramatic."

"Oh no, I never noticed that" Rock said with a roll of his eyes "I suppose the giant skull on your castle should have been a clue but it was way too subtle."

"Look" Dr. Wily said with an annoyed tone "I'm trying to give you valuable information here as well as possibly turn over a new leaf. Can't we just focus on what's going on here and now and move forward? Wipe the slate clean, as it were?"

"I think that would be an excellent way to proceed" Dr. Light said "at least for the time being."

"I think so too" Rock said "I'm sorry for my behavior. I'll admit it's a bit hard to trust you, Dr. Wily, but since you are making an effort here, so will I."

"Thank you. I would suggest that we shake on it but our city's finest here might just taser me into a coma."

The guards looked surly but didn't do anything. Dr. Light said "Um quite. Anyway, what were you saying about alien robots before we got off track?"

"I started doing research and collecting every scrap of information I could find. Of course, I didn't get as far into my research as I might have because I was,er, involved in another project at the time..." he looked paused with an emarassed expression on his face but this time Dr. Light and Rock stayed silent and politely waited for him to continue "Anyway, from what I could decipher I discovered that a race of robots actually existed in ancient times and tried to exist alongside humanity. Many were rather simple if powerful in those designs and they seemed to be called Reaverbots."

"That's…ominous" Rock commented

"I never claimed to be a linguist; my computers were doing the bulk of the translating and some of these terms are approximations. There was also a class of robots I'm calling the Kuiper Droids. I chose that term because a lot of the related terminology and names are based on celestial bodies from the Kuiper Belt in the Outer solar system."

"Fascinating" Dr. Light said

"Indeed. These are the ninja like robots that the news is currently reporting on. I had a theory that the ninja clans may have in fact based themselves on legends of these robots. However, the real threat is force at the top of this hierarchy."

"I'm betting it's the Master Program" Rock said

"Yes. More of a computer program than an actual robot, the Master Program was in charge of all of these ancient robots. Eventually, it deemed humanity as a blight upon the planet and began to wipe them out. As for what stopped this massacre and caused these robots to vanish, I'm afraid I can't say. Perhaps some other force came to Earth to stop them or perhaps the humans of the time found some way of overthrowing the Master Program. My research didn't include that part of the story."

"Where does Juno fit into this?" Dr. Light inquired

"That's the real meat of the issue. The legends say that the Master Program has four guardians who share names with major asteroids. They were called Juno, Ceres, Pallas, and Vesta. Based on their names and functions, I began to collectively call them the Asteroid Guardians."

"So you want me to take these guardians out?" Rock asked

"You may have to. The Master Program was protected in some way. My research was a little unclear on this point but it seems that it had some sort of mobile fortress protecting it. It was highly protected and the only way to gain access was the energy signatures of all four Guardians. However, you my dear Rock could use your copy ability on them. Not only would you gain the ability to open the fortress but you might even learn its nature and location."

"If your research is indeed accurate then that would be a logical plan" Dr. Light said "Rock, do you feel up to such a venture?"

"Do I have a choice? The world is in danger and I can help."

"Always the hero" Dr. Wily said with a smile "This time I'm grateful. Even at my worst, I never wanted humanity destroyed. Besides, I'm a human so it's self preservation as much as anything else."

"What do you know about these guardians?" Rock asked "It seems that Juno controls the wind."

"It seems that the other three have elemental abilities but our last meeting" again he paused to look awkward and apologetic "stopped my research cold. Maybe the authorities can decipher more from what they confiscated from my castle. I hope they can find something of help."

Before anything more could be said, an officer burst into the room. "I'm sorry to interrupt but there is a situation and we need Mega Man."

"What's going on?" Rock asked

"One of the robots is demanding to duel you and he's holding an entire town hostage to make sure that you come."


	5. Warrior of the Waves

**Hello Faithful Readers! Yes, I know it hasn't been that long since the last chapter and here is another one. I'm just as amazed as you. I feel pretty good and I hope I can keep this pace up for once. I also hope you guys enjoy this chapter. Happy Reading!**

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Chapter 5: Warrior of the Waves

The valley seemed quiet. A river wound through the trees and ran near the edge of a small village. In one direction this band of water ran toward the horizon with the other direction revealing its source. A large manmade lake served the area in many ways but the dam was the only thing keeping the entire valley from being underwater. According to the information the police provided, this dam was now being threatened and only one robot could stop it.

Said robot materialized in the middle of the town with a flash of blue light. The square was filled with a crowd of scared people trying to figure out what to do. They were startled by Mega Man's sudden appearance but many looked relieved that he had come.

"Hooray!"

"It's him"

"Can you really help us?"

"Everyone calm down" he called out over the babble "Can someone tell me exactly what's going on? The police gave me some details but I want to make sure I have the facts straight."

A woman in a dark suit stepped forward and said "My name is Amelia and I'm the mayor of Apple Village. Just earlier today a strange robot named Pallas appeared in our town and threatened to flood the valley if you didn't come to fight him."

"Pallas…it looks like Dr. Wily's information was accurate after all."

"Dr. Wily? Is this another one of his creations?"

"We actually don't think so this time but that doesn't mean the threat isn't real. Ok so he could easily do that by destroying the dam but why don't you all just leave?"

"Didn't they tell you that the town is surrounded by robots keeping us in?"

"I did hear something like that but everything seems relatively calm. I don't see any robots."

As he finished speaking, a shuriken landed at his feet. Everyone looked up to see a shadowy figure on a nearby roof. Before even his enhanced vision good get a good view of the attacker, they were already gone.

"Those guys are everywhere" Amelia explained "If anyone goes near the town line, they attack. No one has been hurt yet but there have been some near misses. Also a bomb detonated upstream towards the dam. It was an open area with minimal damage but it showed us that this Pallas character most likely does have the dam rigged to blow."

"And where is he now?" Mega Man asked

"He delivered his message and then dove into the river. He swam upstream pretty quickly so I imagine he's at the dam."

"Hmmm…sounds like a water element robot. That would the area with the most advantage for him. Ok, I'll go check it out. I imagine our little clan of robo ninjas will let me leave."

"Be careful Mega Man. He looked tough."

"They usually are. Don't worry; I'll take care of you guys by taking care of him."

Amid cheers and loud wishes of luck from the villagers, Mega Man ran towards the north edge of town and towards his enemy. He thought he saw some more rooftop movement as he passed beyond the town borders but nothing impeded his path.

"Looks like this could take a while. Good thing I stopped by the lab and picked up some toys on the way here."

He pointed his buster over the shallows of the river and manifested an Item 2 hover board. He sailed over the water at high speed and followed the path upstream. Suddenly, a fish-like robot leapt out of the water and almost knocked him off of his board. It was as large as he was with a green body, a big head with red eyes, and two fins similar legs near the front of the body. He dodged it and managed to keep his balance on the board but another fish robot attacked him from the other side and this one did toss him.

He landed in the water and quickly scrambled to the shore. One of the robots followed him but its movements were more awkward and slow on land. Mega Man blasted it but suddenly it struck back with sonic waves from its mouth.

"Ok not so defenseless." He dodged the next sonic blast and finished it off with a few more shots from his buster. "I guess these things were put here to make sure no one escaped by the river. Either that or the games have already begun."

He summoned another item 2 but this time set chose a path alongside the river bank and the fish robots didn't bother him as much. They would occasionally leap from the water and try to snap at him but it was easy to avoid them.

"Still it's a little hard to keep balance on this thing" he mused "We may need to try to improve the design a bit."

After some more traveling, sometimes by Item 2 and sometimes on foot, he reached the dam. "Should I try to go after the bombs or Pallas? Both I guess but I don't see either or even a way in."

"Hey hero!" a loud voice called from above "I'm up here!"

Mega Man looked up and could make out a figure leaning over the edge of the dam. They seemed to be a bulky human shaped being waving for Mega Man to come up there. The edge of the dam was up against a steep hill and Mega Man wasted no more time but instead simply began the uphill hike. In order to conserve energy and speed up the trek he occasionally used Item 1. The round platform levitated him over the more difficult parts and soon he had reached the top of the hill. A road ran across the dam but there were no cars there now.

Instead there was a robot standing in the middle of the road smiling and waving at him. He was taller than Mega Man; about the height of an average sized adult man. Most of his bodywas a light blue with the roman style armor on his legs, arms, and torso a darker blue. This armor was designed to resemble the scales of a fish and the breastplate was muscular in appearance. His helmet also had a vague roman appearance but it covered the upper half of his face and his eyes peered at him through glass goggles. The top of the helmet lacked the Roman "brush" and instead had a large fin. One arm ended in a buster and the other in a hand which clutched a spear.

"We did a little research on this world" the robot said "I mean after being asleep for so long, you'll want to see what's gone one while you took your little nap. I was so intrigued when I found out that the modern world had a champion and a fellow robot to boot. I know we have a greater purpose and all that but we can't have you mucking up our plans, now can we?"

"And I bet you volunteered to take care of the big bad Mega Man, am I right Pallas?"

"That's right" he leaned on his spear and grinned "I've always loved a good battle. However, I'm a bit disappointed. Can a child like you really be the hero this internet thing was talking about?"

"Don't judge a book by its cover. Despite my preference for peace, I'm really quite strong."

Pallas yawned and said "All of a sudden, all this talking is making me feel sleepy so if it's all the same to you, I'm going to kill you now."

Without any further ado, he gave a war cry and rushed at Mega Man with spear extended. Mega Man dodged to the side and blasted Pallas but the ancient robot ducked under the plasma shots. As he ducked, he jabbed his spear to the side and brushed the side of Mega Man's leg.

"Oh, tough body ya got there! Not even a proper scratch. I'll soon fix that though."

As he was speaking, he was back on his feet and lunging at Mega Man. The hero had seconds to act and actually grabbed the spear. He was holding the point mere inches from his chest and it was now a contest of strength to see if it would pierce him or not. Pallas was very well built and the point of the spear crept closer and closer despite Mega Man's best efforts. He had an idea; he used all his strength to jerk it upwards and throw his enemy off balance. While Pallas staggered backwards, Mega Man fired several buster shots into him.

The force of the blasts sent Pallas flying backwards and he almost fell over the edge into the reservoir. Mega Man tried to fire again but Pallas had already righted himself and was aiming his own buster.

"Try some Hydro Bullets, Hero Boy!"

Mega Man was pummeled by large balls made of water fired at very high speed. He felt like he was being battered by punches from a champion level boxer. He did topple over and landed on his back. As he regained his bearings, he saw Pallas appear over him with the spear pointed down. His eyes glowed through the helmet's built in goggles and his grin grew wider. Mega Man fired up into Pallas' face and this distracted the screaming robot long enough for Mega Man to flip over and crawl away. He climbed to his feet and the spear came down right between his legs where it had been flung like a harpoon.

"You cracked my goggles" Pallas complained "Now it's like I'm looking through a spider's web you jerk!"

"I'd like to point out that I didn't challenge you, you challenged me" Mega Man responded as he began to wrench the spear out of the asphalt ground.

"Oh and that's a reason to be rational?"

Pallas ran forward while Mega Man held up his new weapon. Suddenly, Pallas stopped and fired another round of Hydro Bullets. Mega Man wasn't expecting this and was pummeled by the attack while his enemy plucked the spear from his hands.

"That's mine, you thief."

"That's not all I plan to steal before this is over."

"Huh? Oh yeah, the info said something about absorbing the abilities of other robots."

"You did do your homework."

Pallas shrugged and said "Don't look so surprised. I mean we only have super computers for brains…well at least I do. Your brain is probably a potato or something."

Mega Man responded with more plasma shots and the first few actually connected before Pallas was able to get out of the way. He held the spear up for another attack but Mega Man suddenly remembered something. Yes he could absorb abilities and he recently had.

"Rolling Cutter" he shouted as a blade erupted from his buster. Pallas was paralyzed by momentary shock at the new technique and thus didn't move his weapon out of the blade's path. The end with the point was sliced off and Mega Man was already running forward to grab it. Pallas' shocked expression became anger as Mega Man tossed the spear point over the side of the dam.

"Normally I hate littering but sometimes you have to make an exception."

"That does it! It's time for a change of venue."

Pallas tackled Mega Man and kept running. Mega Man was carried over the edge of the dam and together they plummeted into the lake below. Once they were submerged, Pallas shot toward deeper water like a rocket. Without warning he released Mega Man and swam away. He turned around and rammed Mega Man with his body as the blue hero sank to the bottom. Mega Man tried to fire on his enemy but he was already gliding away like a fish.

"Ha ha" Pallas' laughter cut through the water a clear as a bell "It looks like the great hero can't even swim. You sink like a rock, Rock."

"Oh very clever."

"More clever than you; if you really wanted to absorb my powers or whatever I just gave you the perfect opening."

"Well…I…let's just keep fighting!"

"Oh this isn't a fight…it's a massacre!"

He swam in a wide circle around Mega Man while firing Hydro Bullets. Mega Man was stuck in the center of the deadly ring. He tried to fire back but Pallas was way too fast and agile. Mega Man tried to escape and gain some distance by jumping out of the ring. The usual underwater buoyancy carried him up above Pallas and he was able to fire on him. Pallas flinched and switched back to the ramming tactic.

Before he could hit, Mega Man fired a plasma shot upwards and propelled himself downwards out of Pallas' path. He hit the bottom of the lake and started firing after his aquatic enemy. Pallas avoided the plasma shots and swam toward Mega Man with astonishing speed. Mega Man screamed as Pallas' fist collided with his face. He fell backwards in the water but didn't hit the ground because Pallas' foot hit him first. He was kicked upwards and then immediately punched and sent flying through the water.

"I'm stronger, faster, I'm clearly more handsome, and I can swim. There is no way you can beat me."

"I sort of wish I could introduce you to Air Man. I mean they all say that but Air Man said it the most."

"And you beat him, huh? Well not this time hero boy." Pallas lifted Mega Man up by the throat and held him so they were eye to eye "Any last words?"

"Just two: Rolling Cutter."

Mega Man released the blade at point blank range and Pallas' eyes bulged in shock. The cutter had severed Pallas' neck and his head was now parting company with his body. The body collapsed and Mega Man managed to steady himself as the grip on his throat was released. He bent down to absorb what he could from the dying body while the head landed nearby.

"You…you…"

"I believe the word you're looking for is winner."

"That just plain ruthless" Pallas smiled "Maybe you are a warrior after all."

"I suppose I am" Mega Man said as he shot the head and finished the ancient robot off. "One down, three to go."


	6. Red Hot Rumble

Chapter 6: Red Hot Rumble

Mega Man observed his surroundings after the teleport was finished. He was on the beach of a tropical island and not too far from the foothills of a large mountain. Smoke could be faintly seen rising from the summit revealing its true identity as a volcano. There was a break in the trees and foliage ahead of him showing a path through the jungle. He put a hand to his helmet and activated the radio.

"I'm on the island Dr. Light."

"Good. I'm sorry that you have to face another challenge again so quickly but time is of the essence."

"Well it's nothing new for me. Anyway, the reports said that there were robots spotted near and around the volcano?"

"Yes. The computer should have deposited you not far from a cave at the mountain base."

"Sounds like as good a place to start as any. On that note, here I go."

"Good luck Rock"

Mega Man thanked him and set out down the jungle path. For a few minutes, nothing impeded his path but suddenly a small round object burrowed out of the ground. It was a small red ball with three blue legs, three white horns arranged like a mohawk, and a face with red eyes and a big, wide mouth. This strange robot was right in Mega Man's path and he accidentally kicked it. As soon as his foot collided with it, the robot exploded and threw him onto his rear end.

"Ok I wasn't expecting that. It seems the guardians like to have some guards of their own."

As he was speaking, another little round tripod robot jumped out of the nearby bushes and began waddling towards Mega Man. He tried shooting it and that caused it to explode. Mega Man shielded his face from flying debris and quickly stood up.

"Ok, easy to defeat but with explosive results. Good to know."

He resumed his trek but was attracting the attention of more little bomb bots. He now had three of them chasing him and trying to trip him up. He was now dancing around trying not to step on of the little bombs. In desperation he scooped one up and tossed it away. It exploded in mid air but didn't hurt him. Following that, he leapt backwards and blasted the remaining two with his buster. He kept running so as to put distance between himself and the explosion and managed not to be affected too badly.

From there it was only a short way to the cave. He did have to deal with more bomb bots but between tossing them and shooting them at a distance, he made it through unharmed. He approached the entrance but something was moving inside it. He held out his buster and braced himself as the shadows continued to move. Suddenly a squat robot about his height burst out of the cave. It was of the same type as the robots that Cut Man fought in the underground Amazon base.

As Mega Man shot at it, another robot emerged from the foliage behind him. It dropped onto its back and lobbed a bomb at him. Mega Man jumped up and grabbed a low hanging branch. The bomb passed through the space where he used to be and hit the original robot. While robot one went up in smoke, Mega Man dropped down and finished off robot two.

"Why is everything on this island trying to blow me up?" He glanced up at the volcano and said "Well I suppose that would fit the theme, wouldn't it?"

He entered the tunnel, keeping his eyes peeled for anymore enemies. He heard something moving up above but he saw nothing when he looked. He took another step but he heard it again; something was in the tunnel with him. He held his buster at the ready and looked all around. Something large slithered nearby and he spun on the spot to face it. The large object was already moving out of sight but something slammed into his midsection and slammed him against the wall.

He recovered quickly and raised his buster. His jaw dropped as he discovered that he was pointing it right at a giant mechanical worm. Before he could fire, the worm released a stream of flame right into his face. Mega Man screamed and rolled to the side. He was singed but still ready to fight. He fired as rapidly as he could on the beast and in seconds it exploded.

"I'm getting kind of sick of all the explos…oh you have got to be kidding me."

From the smoldering remains of the worm, a large and brightly colored moth robot was fluttering high into the air. It swooped over Mega Man and released a cloud of spores. He instantly felt his joints locking up and the moth slammed into him while he was paralyzed. He tried to get up but his body was still a little stiff and the moth smashed into him again. Thankfully, the spores wore off quickly and he fired off several Rolling Cutters. The robot's wing-like appendages were hacked to pieces and the main body fell harmlessly to the ground.

"Ok, that was some fierce technology."

Not wanting to waste any more time or words, he silently ran down the tunnel and didn't see the hole in front of him. He tumbled head over heels and landed with a loud thud in the space below.

"Ah Mega Man" a deep voice spoke "I see that you decided to drop in."

Mega Man studied his surroundings and found that he was in another control room like the one in the Amazon. He recognized the same floating crystal and similar monitors but these were in far worse shape. A pair of androids was busy with repair work using some of the stolen machinery Agent Stern had mentioned. They were dark blue apart from their face and Mega Man supposed he was getting a good look at the Kuiper Droids.

Over seeing their work was a large and odd robot. He was a dull red with a stocky, V shaped torso. The shoulders rose above the head and they vented the smoke coming from a visible fire in his stomach with a grilled, stove like door over the front. His body didn't appear to be metal, more like some sort of ceramic and his very large torso and shoulders appeared to be built from brick or clay A sword and scabbard was attached to the robot's belt which explained the lack of a buster.

"Which one are you?"

"My name is Vesta and I can't allow you to stop our work here."

"So that is why the humans are still here. Centuries of wear and tear on your systems need a bit of patching up."

"Yes and you will not stop it. Unlike my battle crazed brother, I did not request your presence here. I had hoped that my guards would stop you."

"I'm afraid that it will take more than that to stop me. I've had some practice."

"Then I will take up the battle myself." Mega Man struck a battle pose and Vesta's face clouded "Obviously we're not fighting here!"

Vesta approached Mega Man and grabbed his outstretched buster arm. They teleported out of the underground room and materialized on a ledge in the crater of the volcano. "Are we sure I can't pick the location" Mega Man said with a nervous glance at the lake of magma "We could flip a coin."

"I'd rather flip you" his fist caught on fire and arced through the air in a punch. Mega Man jumped back and Vesta's flaming fist created a deep hole in the stone wall beside them.

"Strong and uses fire" Mega Man muttered "Just my luck"

"My punches don't need proximity" Vesta grinned "Flame Fist!"

He punched the air but the fireball kept going. Mega Man jumped to the side and was startled to find he was wobbling on the edge over the magma below. Vesta's grin grew even wider as he lunged forward and punched the ground at Mega Man's feet. The rock shattered and the blue robot plummeted toward the lake of death. As he flipped over in midair, his mind rushed and he acted quickly.

"Item 1" he shouted in desperation and smashed face first into the hovering platform. "A bit undignified" he muttered as he fell flat onto his belly "but it got the job done."

"Not bad" Vesta called "But not good enough."

Mega Man saw that more Flame Fists were hurtling towards him. He fired back with his buster and managed to neutralize most of the fireballs. The others passed close by him but he wasn't hurt. He had another problem however, the Item 1 only lasted a short time and he knew he had to find a new place to stand. He spotted a series of large rocks jutting out the magma and he summoned an Item 2. The board surfed through the air while staying ahead of more fireballs and he leapt onto the closest rock.

"Wow that's hot" he observed as the heat rose in waves from just feet beneath him "That apartment building had nothing on this."

"You think that you're safe down there?" Vesta was already half jumping/half climbing the crater wall down to where Mega Man now stood. Mega Man fired on him with plasma shots but Vesta was rather tough. When a shot did hit, he seemed to just shrug it off. In no time, he was standing near Mega Man. He drew his sword and Mega Man gulped when the blade began to glow red hot.

"It should be hot enough to slice through your body like butter. Shall we test that theory?"

The searing sword slashed through the air and Mega Man had to duck in order to keep his head. Vesta tried again and Mega Man scuttled to the side. He pointed his buster up towards Vesta's side and said "Hydro Bullet."

Vesta flinched as the ball of water hit at close range with the force of a bullet. He then turned to Mega Man and said "Still not good enough."

Mega Man took several hasty steps backwards as he was almost run through with Vesta's sword. He felt the edge of the rock under his feet and he did a sort of twirl around Vesta as the sword thrust again. Mega Man was no behind him and he took the opportunity to fire off some more Hydro Bullets. Vesta's back sizzled and he grunted but again no critical damage was dealt.

"That armor is just too tough."

"Just like me" Vesta said as he spun around and punched Mega Man in the gut. He felt like he was going to be torn in half by the force of the blow. He fell limp and Vesta held him up in the air. "Time to end this" he raised his sword with the other hand and carefully pointed it at Mega Man's neck.

Mega Man raised his buster and aimed it into Vesta's face "Hydro Bullet"

This time there was a definite effect; Vesta screamed and dropped both Mega Man and his sword. He grabbed his face in pain and Mega Man took the opportunity to kick the sword into the magma. Vesta screamed again, this time in rage, and he tried to grab the weapon but it had already sunk.

"You little punk!"

He spun around and grabbed Mega Man by the throat. He lifted Mega Man up and began pounding him with a flaming fist. Mega Man screamed but the assault continued. As he was jostled around, his half closed eye fell upon Vesta's stomach and the fire that burned within.

Mustering up his strength, Mega Man raised his buster and pointed it at the grill in front of the flames. He released a Hydro Bullet and the water passed through the bars and doused the flames. Vesta staggered back in pain and dropped Mega Man. He fell flat on the ground and took the opportunity to grab Vesta's ankle and absorb his weapon data. His victory was quickly ruined as he felt his opponent's foot come down hard onto his back.

"You are very annoying" Vesta growled "And I grow tired of this battle."

He stomped on Mega Man again and the heroic robot didn't know how much more he could take. He rolled to the side and Vesta's foot actually cracked the ground where he had just been. Mega Man climbed as quickly as he could into a kneeling position and aimed his buster directly into the stomach flames. He channeled what little strength he had left into a round of Hydro Bullets. The fire was no match for that much water and was quickly doused. Vesta staggered around with black smoke and steam pouring from his stomach and shoulders.

"My…you…"

"I guess that was your pilot light. Sorry but it had to be put out."

Vesta swung at Mega Man but it was a normal, non-fire punch and lacked the usual force. He tried a second time to punch Mega Man but he was able to side step it even in his battered state. Mega Man didn't have much strength left but he channeled what he had into his buster. He first aimed at the face but then decided to try something else. Backed out of the way of another weakened punch and fired into the now empty space in the stomach. Vesta was rocked by an internal explosion and collapsed to the ground.

"At least…the repairs…were…completed…" His eyes went blank and he spoke no more.

"Well that sounds ominous" his legs gave way and he collapsed into a sitting position. "Guess I need a few repairs myself before doing anything else." With that he turned on the radio and requested a teleport home.


	7. Nature's Fury

**Hello Readers. I do deeply apologize for this delay. Just been dealing with some stuff and had a lot going on. I still could have written more but here it is at last. I hope you like it.**

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Chapter 7: Nature's Fury

"It kills me to see you in such a state" Dr. Light said as he worked carefully but quickly on Mega Man's repairs.

"Well it almost kills me to be in this state…literally."

"That's not very funny, Rock."

"Sorry."

"I understand that you're just trying to deal with this situation."

"I wish we knew what the situation actually was. Can they really wipe out the humans? How do they plan to do it?"

"The energy in those large crystals seems very potent. All these control stations scattered all over the world are probably built to channel that energy. Possibly focus it or even amplify it. Who knows what that could do with the right technology?"

"Well we know what they intend" Mega Man said "I guess we don't really need the gruesome details."

"Not as long as you can stop it in time. Roll is busy analyzing the data you absorbed from those robots but it seems encrypted. Albert is right; we need the data from all four of them."

"I still can't believe we're working with Dr. Wily but his info is working out so far."

"Indeed it is. And I think that's it. You're ready to go back to work my boy."

"And not a moment too soon" Roll said as she entered the lab. Rock sat up and sipped an E Tank while she continued "I think I've found another one."

"Do you mean another Asteroid Guardian?" Dr. Light asked

"Yes. The computer picked up energy similar to those gems and there is usually a robot nearby."

Mega Man drained the rest of the E Tank and said "Then I guess it's showtime."

Dr. Light plugged Roll's information into the teleport system and Mega Man was off. He found himself standing in the middle of a lush forest. The birds were singing, there was a gentle breeze blowing in the branches, and there was plenty of room to walk amongst the underbrush. He didn't see any enemy robots or in fact anything that seemed out of place.

"Looks more like a setting for a good hike rather than a battle for the planet" said Mega Man as he continued to look around.

"Don't doubt me" Roll snapped over the radio "This is definitely the right place."

"I didn't mean that" he quickly explained "It's just that after volcanoes and nearly flooded villages, this is not what I was expecting. Actually, it's kind of creepy."

"What do you mean?"

"Well when one is expecting anything, nothing can actually be quite jarring."

Before anything else could be said, a round and heavy object hit Mega Man hard on the top of his head and exploded a half second later. He lost his balance and sprawled on his back in the grass with faint smoke rising from his helmet. High pitched squawk-like laughter rang out above him and he tried to get a better look. His attacker was already moving quickly through the thick branches and he couldn't make out what it was.

"What was that?" Roll asked over the radio

"Either these trees grow exploding fruit or something up there doesn't like me."

"I guess you can relax now that something is trying to kill you."

"Very funny Roll" he replied "Now I've got to start paying attention before something else…incoming!"

Another bomb was flying towards him out of a nearby tree and he wasn't able to move quickly enough. He was thrown sideways into a tree trunk as the projectile exploded against his shoulder. As he was trying to stand up, he was pelted by plasma shots from several directions. He pointed his buster toward one stream of shots but the shadowy sniper was already on the move. He ducked behind the tree but the branches above him were rustling and the shots were now coming from this side.

Hoping to shake the assailants for even a moment, Mega Man broke into a run. He could hear the snipers following and he could feel shots clipping his back and heels as he ran. He glanced back and spied a particularly shaky branch. He spun on the spot and fired a Rolling Cutter which sliced the whole limb right off the tree. A mass of wood, leaves, and small robots crashed to the ground.

There were only a handful of the robots and they looked somewhat like birds. Their design was simple with orange legs and feet, black bodies, beige wings with black tips and round beige heads with beaks and narrowed eyes. The heads were topped with a screw shaped appendage giving either the appearance that the birds were wearing hats. They were all squawking in shock and anger after the sudden fall.

One of the birds leapt up and glared up at Mega Man. It began shooting plasma shots at him from its open beak. Mega Man dodged and fired back. In a few hits the bird was rocked by an inner explosion and lay blackened and smoking. Though it moved no more, its comrades had freed themselves from the fallen branch and were out to avenge their fallen friend. A couple of birds were running around on the ground but the others had taken to the air. Mega Man found himself in a firestorm of bombs and plasma shots. Every time he tried to hit a bird, another one would hit him. A few times they would actually ram him from the air with their bodies.

"This is really getting on my nerves!" Mega Man grunted as another bomb hit him. "Flame fist."

He managed to hit a bird and it was taken down in one shot. He tried again but this time his midair target avoided the fireball and it sailed right through the branches of a tree.

"Uh oh, I need to be careful. I don't want to start a fire in the forest."

"Don't worry" an angry new voice said "You won't."

He looked around for the newcomer but was startled when a large projectile narrowly missed his foot. It appeared to be a wooden cone with a very sharp point. "Is that a…thorn?"

"Indeed. Natures wrath can be quite sharp indeed."

He had spotted the speaker and didn't know how to react. A robot was sitting on a low hanging branch with a buster pointed at him. Unlike every other robot he had faced off against, this one was a woman. Her shoulder length hair was brown as were her arms and legs. She was wearing a sleeveless dress with mini skirt which was the same shade of yellow as her boots and buster. Her other arm ended in a yellow cuff, similar to the buster on the other arm, and a white gloved hand. She had a pink rose in her hair and another one serving as the buckle on a belt resembling a thorny vine. She was glaring at Mega Man with deep hatred.

"Oh…um…hello" he said "I suppose you're Ceres?"

"Yes and you're Mega Man, the jerk attacking my cute friends as well as this forest."

At this the birds, who had settled into a semi circle on the ground beneath Ceres, actually pulled one eyelid down and stuck their tongues out at him.

"Ok that was mature. Anyway, I'm just trying to save the world here."

"So are we" Ceres replied "Saving it from the organic trash destroying this planet and all the beautiful plants on it."

"Technically plants are organic too."

"They exist in such perfect harmony with the other natural elements. There was such beautiful order and balance that was destroyed by the humans. Besides, who are you judge. Your solutions to problems are as violent as ours; just ask my brothers Pallas and Vesta."

"I was only doing what I had to" Mega Man said in a low voice

"So am I" she adjusted the aim of her buster a little and shouted "Gaia's Thorn!"

Another wooden projectile soared towards his head and Mega Man leaned back so far and so quickly that he fell to the ground. Before he could get up, he was swarmed by bird robots. It was a flurry of wings, sharp beaks, and plasma shots. He could hear Ceres laughing merrily as she watched Mega Man trying to free himself. He managed to bash one of the birds in the head with the side of his buster; it was hurled to the side and the rest of the flock was momentarily distracted.

Mega Man rolled to the side and tumbled into a kneeling position. He released a hail of plasma on the birds and took most of the flock out. Meanwhile, one bird was flying above the scene and Mega Man didn't notice it until the bomb had already been launched. He was hit in the chest and screamed as he was rocked by the explosion. Rather than firing again, the cocky bird stopped to laugh and Mega Man took his shot. A Rolling Cutter sliced through the air and then through the bird. It was then Mega Man noticed that Ceres had stopped laughing.

"I suppose it's my own fault; never send a bird to do a woman's job."

She stood up on the branch before leaping from the tree. She turned a somersault while retrieving something that was attached to her back. It was a staff that extended and unfolded into a scythe. She landed a few feet from Mega Man holding the weapon with one hand and thorn visibly ready to launch from her buster.

"It seems there's a blue weed in my garden that needs to be cut down."

She ran towards Mega Man with frightening speed and slashed with the scythe. Mega Man screamed as a shallow gash was ripped across his stomach. He stumbled back but she was already attacking again. She was standing inches from him and preparing to swing the blade down onto his head. He reacted more on instinct than thought as he fired a shot into her stomach. It was her turn to scream and stumble backwards and Mega Man took the opportunity to put some distance between them.

As he was running, he felt a thorn hit him in the back of the knee. He was thrown off balance and he tumbled to the ground in a heap. He rolled over and reached to pull the thorn out but Ceres was coming towards him. He shot plasma at her knees and it was now her turn to take a tumble. He took the opportunity to extract the thorn and climb to a standing position. She had dropped her scythe when she fell and Mega Man knew he had to get it away from her.

He ran to the weapon and bent over to pick it up. Suddenly he was once again thrown off balance due to being struck by a thorn. As he hit the ground he realized two things: he had fallen across the scythe and she'd be more than happy to go through him to retrieve it and also the thorn was impaled in a most awkward location.

"Really?" he asked a hysterical Ceres "In the rear end?"

"Well when you present such an easy target" she said through her giggles

He tried to stand up but it wasn't easy with the new addition to his backside. As he reached around and struggled to remove the thorn, Ceres reclaimed her scythe. Mega Man succeeded and straightened up just in time to dodge her blade. He leapt back and fired; the scythe was still completing its journey which left her open to the attack. She screamed and stumbled backwards. While she was correcting her balance, Mega Man grabbed her buster and began to down load her weapon data.

"Get off of me" she shouted as he kicked him hard in the stomach and it was his turn to stumble backwards "That's no way to treat a lady."

"Lady huh?"

"Just a delicate flower" she held up her scythe threateningly "who just happens to have thorns!"

She swung at him with all of her strength but Mega Man had already hit the deck. Ceres had failed to notice how close they had come to a tree trunk in the last few minutes and she sliced right through it. A look of horror crossed her face as the tree twisted, the slice grew bigger, and finally gravity won the fight. Both robots scrambled to get out of the way as the tree crashed to the ground.

"Wow that thing is sharp" Mega Man said in slight horror as he gazed at the felled tree

"You think so?" Ceres growled "I think it's a little dull personally. Here let me sharpen it in your stupid little head!"

She was on top of him quickly and swinging maniacally. He danced around the blade while trying to get in a clear shot but she was very quick and agile. Every time he lined up his buster, he had to dodge yet another slash with many near misses and even a few nicks. Finally, hoping to have better luck with a larger projectile, he released a Flame Fist. The fireball brushed Ceres' shoulder but rocked her whole body. Her deadly pursuit turned into a wild dance of pain.

"Fire…of course. Why do I even bother with my buster?"

"Don't think this is over yet!"

Mega Man jumped to the side as a thorn flew past and he heard Ceres scream as it hit a tree trunk.

"You…you keep making me hurt the trees!"

"Well maybe you shouldn't pick a fight in a forest!"

"You came to challenge me, remember?"

"You and your brothers started…oh forget it I'm more mature than that." He summoned an Item 1 and leapt into the branches of a nearby tree "I'd like to see you hit me now, Mother Nature."

"How on earth is hiding and name calling mature?"

"I'm not hiding…I'm just curious to see you fight me without hurting the tree."

She twitched before taking aim with her buster and then lowering it. Mega Man peered through the branches and she took aim a second time but failed to fire when he withdrew and scuttled along the limbs closer to the trunk. As she was trying to figure out what to do, he leaned out into view and fired a buster shot. She saw it but for once she reacted too slowly. She grunted as the plasma struck her in the torso. Mega Man was already on the move and before she could locate him, he had fired upon her once again.

"Stop that!" she shouted in frustration "Heroes are supposed to play fair!"

"Who's playing?" she heard a quiet voice say as he jumped from a branch and landed behind her. He called upon Vesta's power once more and Ceres blasted at point blank range. She screamed as her hair, belt, and even internal parts went up in flames. In less than a minute, her burned out shell hit the forest floor and moved no more.

"I'm just doing what's necessary to save the world."


	8. The Last Guardian

Chapter 8: The Last Guardian

\\\ Mega Man hiked resolutely along the mountain trail keeping any eye out for the last of the Asteroid Guardians. He had to get that last bit of data quickly and find the Master Unit as soon as possible. His sense of purpose was mingled with several other thoughts and emotions. It had been with the aid of Dr. Wily's information that they had tracked this final refractor station and it was nice to see the scientist possibly turning genuinely good. However, this only deepened his sadness that he could be pulled into a deadly conflict without Wily being behind it. How many other such battles and problems lay in his future?

He was deep in thought and almost didn't hear the slight shifting in the rocks nearby. He didn't react quickly enough and a shuriken struck him in the shoulder. He ducked behind a nearby boulder and yanked the projectile out. He mentally chided himself for not being more careful as he honed every sense in readiness for another attack. Sure enough, immediately a couple more shuriken were embedded in the rock where his head had been seconds before. He had rolled forward into a one legged kneel with his buster primed.

He glimpsed a shadow in the rocky terrain above him. He fired but the shadow was already on the move. A shuriken hit him in the back and he spun around to face his other opponent. The first droid swooped down and kicked him in the back. Mega Man rolled across the dusty ground and just narrowly stopped short of more shuriken. He rolled onto his back and fired upon his ninja-like assailants. One of the droids, who had sniped Mega Man from a high rock, wasn't quick enough and the shots knocked him to the ground. Mega Man got to his feet to go finish his foe off but the other droid tackled him from behind.

Mega Man was brought to his knees by the force of the attack but he managed to keep his balance. The droid pulled out a shuriken and went for the hero's throat but Mega Man blocked by grabbing his wrist. The two robots grappled for a few seconds before Mega Man managed to point his buster over his shoulder and blast his foe in the face. The droid fell to the ground heavily damaged but his partner had not been wasting time. Mega Man grunted as a shuriken hit in him in the chest. Fortunately, it didn't penetrate all the way but rather is stuck there half in and half out of his torso. Mega Man wrenched it out and prepared to toss it back but the droid was nowhere to be seen.

Mega Man glanced at the path ahead of him. He was passing between two peaks and the walls were starting to close in. However, his target was ahead and time was of the essence. He began to move cautiously but quickly all the while still carrying the shuriken. He thought he heard something and aimed his buster up into the rocks. He paused like that for a moment but nothing happened. Still glancing up at the rocks he began to move along the trail again. Suddenly, he felt the ground give way underneath him and he fell into a heap at the bottom of a pit trap.

"Is there anything ninjas didn't steal from these guys?" he muttered as he righted himself and shook the dust off

A shadow fell across him and he looked up to see a Kupier Droid standing over the pit. The next second found him dancing around to avoid more shuriken. "I've heard of fish in a barrel but I never thought I'd be one."

The droid was taking aim and Mega Man fired a plasma shot. It grazed the droid as he tried to dodge and Mega Man took advantage of the time this bought him. He summoned an Item 3 and began to scale the side of the pit. Just as his head came level with the ground, his vision was blocked by a dark blue leg. Mega Man barely had time to react before the droid kicked him hard in the face and knocked him back into the pit. He landed painfully on the pile of dirt and shuriken carpeting the bottom of the pit.

Mega Man opened his eyes and gasped; the droid was leaping down on top of him. He quickly found himself locked in a deadly wrestling match with the robotic ninja. "Dude" Mega Man quipped "if you wanted a hug, all you had to do was ask."

The droid responded with a powerful headbutt. Mega Man tried to shoot him but his buster arm was pinned down by a powerful hand. With his other hand, the droid produced a shuriken and went straight for Mega Man's face. He managed to grab the droid's wrist and they began to struggle. The droid was very strong and the throwing star was inching closer and closer to Mega Man's head. Mega Man rocked from side to side trying to unbalance his enemy. While this was unsuccessful, he did manage to line his buster up with a loose rock in the side of the pit. He shot it and caused it to fall onto the droid's back.

The ninja was jolted by the force of the falling rock and the surprise of the blow. This allowed Mega Man to free his buster arm and finish his foe off at point blank range. Mega Man pushed the disabled droid off of him and stood up. He was shaken from the battle and more than a little banged up. However, he was still in reasonable fighting condition and he had to keep going.

"One of the drawbacks of being a robot" he mused as he climbed out of the pit trap "you need to be in seriously bad shape to justify a break."

Back on the trail, Mega Man continued the journey had been taking before being rudely interrupted by ancient ninjas. He kept his eyes and ears peeled but nothing nasty seemed to be waiting for him. "Either that means I've already taken care of Juno's guards or everything is going to jump out at once. Not my idea of a party."

Not long after he said this, he came to the end of the trail and the edge of a cliff. Ahead of Mega Man was wide chasm in the mountains broken up by pillars of rock. The right side was completely impassable but a narrow path of sorts continued to the left. Seeing nothing else to do, Mega Man continued the trek while sometimes having to practically hug the rock wall to keep from falling.

"I'm starting to see why the native population is a bit low" he had to stop and correct his balance as a few rocks gave way under his feet "This certainly isn't hiker territory."

"And yet here you are on a jolly holiday in the mountains" a calm voice answered back

Mega Man, who had thankfully come to one of the wider points on the path, turned around to see Juno hovering behind him. He was casually floating with his arms crossed despite the fact that he was over the chasm. His expression was neutral and calm but his eyes had an odd gleam in them. Mega Man struck a battle pose and Juno gave a slight smile.

"Yes I suppose it would be best to just get down to business. Why bother with having you invade yet another of our control bases…not that you could do anything now."

"What do you mean now?"

"The final sequence has begun Mega Man. The refractors are charging the equipment as we speak. True the years have done their damage and we weren't able to do all the repairs we may have liked due to our members being destroyed. All the same, you've only bought the human race a small amount of extra time. The countdown has begun."

"Then I'll have to work fast and do what I do best."

"Murder fellow robots?"

"Just the ones that force me to and right now you're at the top of the list."

Mega Man fired but Juno simply moved to the side. Mega Man tried several more times to fry him with plasma but Juno kept zipping effortlessly around the shots all the while with his arms still crossed. "Please don't get the wrong idea. I'm certainly not judging your actions. As a combat unit myself, I rather admire your skills. I never imagined that a machine of the modern age would be able to defeat my sister and my brothers. However, your function puts you in direct odds with mine."

"Interesting…usually there's at least one robot out for revenge for what I did to the others."

"I just explained why I'm doing what I'm about to do. You just explained why I'm going to enjoy it."

He flew towards Mega Man with frightening speed and punched him in the stomach. Mega Man doubled over from the impact and was instantly knocked to the ground by another blow to the side of his head. He almost rolled off of the cliff and only saved himself by grabbing the edge with one hand. The rock he was gripping held fast and he was now dangling over a terrible drop with the bottom a long way below. Juno came down to land at last and stamped hard on Mega Man's hand.

All of this had happened so quickly that Mega Man was rather disoriented. He recovered quickly and looked up to discover he was staring down the barrel of Juno's buster. Plasma exploded in his face and his whole body was rocked by the impact. At the same moment, Juno lifted his foot and actually kicked the hand to make sure Mega Man fell. The hero tumbled through the air and had a few seconds of panic. Then he pointed his buster straight down and summoned and Item 1. Mega Man slammed hard onto the surface of the round platform but was momentarily safe.

"Oh that's very clever" Juno called out as he watched from above. Mega Man lifted himself onto his hands and knees before glancing up. Juno was still standing on the cliff with his buster aimed at him. "And rather fortunate as it would be an insult to my family if you perished too quickly."

Juno swooped down upon the Item 1 but Mega Man had already summoned another one. Using the platforms as stepping stones, he had soon reached one of the stone towers littering the chasm. As soon as he was on solid ground he readied his buster and began scanning the area for Juno. However, the guardian had already landed behind Mega Man and delivered a solid kick to the blue robot's back. Mega Man tumbled to the ground and barely avoided tumbling over the edge. He had stopped rolling and way lying on his back. Juno stomped hard on his chest and held him there with his foot. He aimed his buster at Mega Man and looked thoughtful.

"Then again perhaps I should end this now. It would be prudent to remove all obstacles quick…"

The rest of his sentence was drowned out due to a face full of plasma. Mega Man had shot while Juno was talking and it fortunately caused his foe to stumble back a few steps. Mega Man stood up and decided to try something with a little more oomph.

"Flame Fist!"

The fire ball was released and then things turned wild. Mega Man was thrown backwards by gale force winds and his attack was harmlessly deflected. Once again the hero found himself clinging to the edge of a rock wall and he quickly tried to climb back up. The sudden wind storm made it difficult but managed to hoist himself up on his forearms and see what had happened. Juno was floating again only now he was at the eye of his own personal tornado.

"I like to call it the cosmic cyclone. Possibly a tad silly, I'll admit, but it's certainly fun."

"That's one word for it" Mega Man remarked as he struggled to climb back up. The wind was winning and in desperation he summoned an Item 2 under him. He quickly let go and surfed to another, larger tower. He turned back to face Juno and fired a barrage of plasma bullets. Not one of the energy projectiles made it through the wall of whirling wind. He also tried another Flame Fist but it too was deflected.

Suddenly, Juno dropped the cyclone and swooped upon Mega Man with his buster blazing. Mega Man danced around trying to avoid the blasts but a few found the mark. He recoiled in pain and was struck to the ground. He looked up to see Juno standing over him with his peacock tail in his hand and folded like a fan. He smiled a little and then struck Mega Man again with it. He rolled across the ground and fired his buster as soon as he could aim. Juno rose safely over Mega Man's attack and unfolded the peacock fan.

"My brethren, as I'm sure you know, all favored more traditional weapons. I, however, fancied something more elegant."

"Yeah" Mega Man said "Let's bash then rather than slash them."

"It's a touch more versatile than that." He swung the fan through the air and Mega Man was once again knocked over the edge by a powerful gust of wind.

"This is getting old!" He summoned yet another Item 1 and was again saved from long drop and a sudden stop "Next time I'm choosing where battle location."

"Oh I very much doubt there will be a next time for you." He swung his fan as Mega Man jumped back on to the stone tower and the blue robot was almost carried right over the other side. The only thing that saved him this time was grabbing hold of a stone jutting out of the ground as he rolled past it. Juno lazily blasted the stone with his buster and again kicked up a gale force. He smiled as Mega Man rolled screaming over the side. His smile grew wider as he heard Mega Man's screams growing faint.

"I knew he could only pull of that platform trick only so many times." He landed and began strolling to the edge of the tower "And with that, the great Mega Man comes to an…"

His sentence ended in a cry of mingled shock and pain. A large thorn was embedded in Juno's torso just below the left shoulder. Below, Mega Man was hanging from the Rolling Cutter he had jammed into the rock wall before allowing Juno to think he'd taken his final fall.

"I was really hoping that would work" Mega Man said as an Item 3 carried him back up "One has to think fast when tangling with you."

"Very good" Juno said as if he were honestly impressed. He ripped the thorn out and hurled it back at Mega Man who side stepped it "That was rather clever if also rather lucky."

Mega Man was already taking aim but Juno slammed his fan down hard on the buster and almost tore it off. The force brought Mega Man to his knees but Juno brought him back up with a fierce uppercut. Mega Man flipped backwards but caught himself on his hands and kicked hard into Juno's chest. The guardian was thrown back but maintained his balance. As he righted himself, he had seconds to dodge more thorns. Once that was done, Juno began to rise into the air again but Mega Man had plans of his own.

"You're not getting away again" he said as he threw himself at Juno and wrapped his arms tightly around him from behind. Juno was surprised to find that they were now both airborne.

"Get off of me!"

"Nope, not until you've surrendered or been defeated."

"You'll kill yourself too, you idiot."

"I'll take my chances; besides you have something I need" Mega Man replied as his copy chip activated.

Juno seemed to catch Mega Man's drift because he became even more enraged "Cosmic Cyclone!"

Once again Juno became the heart of a vicious vortex while the winds tried to rip Mega Man off of him. He hung on as best he could but soon found himself spinning wildly through the air. He circled Juno a few times at breakneck speed before being flung like a rag doll. Fortunately, he wasn't sent towards one of the canyon walls but rather out over the chasm itself. Once his brain caught back up with his airborne body, Mega Man summoned an Item 2 and banked hard to the ride.

He rode the board back towards Juno who was still shielding himself with the cyclone. Mega Man had one desperate idea and fired as many thorns as he could. Somehow, maybe it was the velocity of the projectiles or perhaps it was the shape, they penetrated the storm and struck Juno in the legs and torso. He screamed in shock, pain, and rage as his body convulsed. The cyclone died and Juno began to fall.

He caught himself and managed to fly over to the path at the side of the chasm. He crawled onto solid ground and began trying to extract the thorns. Mega Man banked the Item 2 again and surfed towards Juno. His Item energy finally reached its limit and the board vanished right as Mega Man jumped off of it and landed next to his foe.

"I'm truly sorry it had to be this way" he said as he took aim and fired a buster shot right into one of the holes in Juno's chest. Juno's eyes went blank and he toppled backwards into the chasm. Mega Man listened for a few seconds before hearing a crash from below. Mega Man turned away from the chasm and radioed Light Labs.

"Dr. Light? I'm ready to come home."

"I take it you were victorious again, my boy?"

"Lucky is more the word I'd use but the job is done. Now it's time for the next task on our list."

"Indeed. I'll see you in a moment."

Mega Man vanished in a flash of blue light. Juno's remains were lying far below this spot in a battered heap. One of the fingers began to twitch.


	9. Shadow Warrior

Chapter 9: Shadow Warrior

"My word" Dr. Light was saying "That sounds like it was quiet a battle."

"Yep" Mega Man answered "Plenty of close calls."

"Indeed. I do wonder if your current support items aren't a bit obsolete."

"I was certainly happy to have them today."

"I'm happy that you had them as well. Anyway, you're patched up and ready to go."

"Thanks" Mega Man said as he hopped of the lab table "And now it's time to hit the road again. It's time to find that Master Unit."

"Of course it is" Roll called from the computer "once we decipher the information you downloaded that is."

"Yeah" he agreed "Too bad simply absorbing their data didn't automatically tell me where to go."

"Wouldn't that make life easier" she replied

"I just hope I'm quick enough" Mega Man said thoughtfully "I had help when I went to Dr. Wily's last castle; I wonder if that's a good idea this time."

"Consider you're wish granted" a deep voice called from another room "because the help has just arrived."

"To be of service where needed" Elec Man said as he entered the lab behind Guts Man.

Mega Man watched in astonishment as the other six Light Robot Masters filed in behind them. "What are you guys doing here?"

"I called them" Dr. Light explained "We need all hands on deck especially considering Juno's ominous words about the final countdown. While you were out, Roll and I programmed the teleport system with all the refractor locations that Albert could provide. If trouble starts, we can send our friends here to do what they can to avoid any unnecessary tragedies."

"That's great thinking!"

"Thank you Rock" Dr. Light responded with a slight smile

"Ok guys" Roll said "I think I've got it" instantly all the lights went dead and with them went the computer "Or maybe not."

"What the heck just happened?" asked Fire Man. All of the faces illuminated by his "hair" registered shock and confusion

"I don't know and I don't like it" Dr. Light answered "The loss of power should have caused the backup generator to kick in but it obviously hasn't. I'll go check on it."

Many robots spoke at once and Mega Man cut through the babble with the same sentiment as them "You shouldn't go alone. What if this is some sort of attack?"

As soon as these words left his mouth, Time Man cried out and slumped to the floor. Fire Man took a step closer and illuminated several shuriken embedded in the robot's back. Some had passed all the way through and landed in Guts Man's arm. While he angrily tried to extract the throwing stars, Dr. Light ran to Time Man's side.

"I don't think the damage is too extensive but I don't think he's in much condition to help us in this crisis."

Elec Man, who has standing half in shadow at the edge of the circle of light, suddenly dropped to the floor. Fire Man adjusted his position slightly and revealed Elec Man lying face down with a large gash in his back. He was twitching and sparks flew from his wound. Dr. Light and Mega Man crouched beside him and started to examine the gash while the others formed a protective circle.

"Get out here and face us, you coward!" Guts Man roared

"Yeah cut out…I mean stop the sneaking around" Cut Man added

"I'll go check the generator" Roll announced as she grabbed a flashlight off a nearby desk.

"No!" Mega Man called out "Stay here where it's safe…well safer."

While everyone was focused on this, Bomb Man cried out and collapsed. He had shuriken embedded in the joints of his elbows and knees. He was still active but movement, and especially standing, was more difficult.

"This is not my idea of a party" he groaned with a weak smile.

Mega Man readied his buster and forced his way out of the circle. "It's me you want. I'll fight you as much as you want if you'll leave everyone else alone!"

"Rock…" Dr. Light began but Mega Man didn't let him finish.

"No, I can't let this happen. I'd rather it be me being beaten up than you guys."

"Yo guys" Oil Man said "I see something there!"

He was pointing to a corner of the lab where the darkness seemed to be moving slightly. Mega Man fired in that direction and a human shape flit out of sight with incredible speed. All heads turned in an attempt to track the intruder but he was moving very swiftly and very quietly.

"It's got to be another one of those ninjas" Cut Man said

"I don't care who it is as long as they can be crushed" Guts Man said

"Quiet everyone" Mega Man demanded "We need to listen as well as look."

As soon as the words were out of his mouth, Guts Man roared as the shadow passed swiftly past him and left a gash in his chest. Mega Man ran after the shadow but wound up tripping over a chair in the darkness. Guts Man was damaged but still on his feet and very angry.

"Someone is just asking to be torn to pieces!"

Mega Man was back on his feet and trying to peer through the darkness veiling the lab. "We have to catch him first, Guts Man."

Oil Man glimpsed some movement out of the corner of his eye and slid out of the way. The removal of his target caused the enemy robot to run right into the circle where he was pulled into a bear hug by Fire Man.

"There's no running away now, ya varmint!"

All could see the enemy clearly now and it was indeed one of the ninja droids that had been plaguing Mega Man since from the start. This one seemed slightly taller and had a katana sheathed on his back. Several shuriken were grasped in his hand and he was struggling to raise them in an attack against Fire Man. Suddenly, he jammed them in Fire Man's leg and the robot master loosened his grip as he reeled from the attack.

"Oh no, you don't!" Guts Man cried as he grabbed the ninja by collar of his gi. He lifted the droid off of the floor and held him at arm's length. He pulled back his other fist and said "Prepare for some pain!"

"I say the same thing to you" the droid said to everyone's surprise. He had already drawn his sword and rammed it into the gash in Guts Man's chest. The big robot began to twitch and he released the ninja right as he pulled his sword back out. However, before he even hit the floor the ninja received a face full of plasma courtesy of Mega Man. Both Guts Man and the ninja fell to the ground and lay on their backs.

"This has to stop" Mega Man said to the ninja as he pointed his buster directly in his face. "You are hurting my friends and threatening my family. Why not simply fight me and leave them out of this?"

"I have my orders"

"How can you talk and the others never displayed that ability?" Dr. Light asked. Everyone who was still able to shot him a look and he said "What? It could be important; this is more than scientific curiosity."

The ninja twitched and Mega Man leaned in closer with his buster while Cut Man, Fire Man, and Oil Man went into attack mode as well. "I am an S-Rank Unit, the leader of my clan. I was built to be a superior shadow warrior."

"And I suppose the Master Unit wants you to take out all possible threats, not just me?" Mega Man asked

"I would think that would be obvious by now."

"Still it's not cool to sneak around like this" Oil Man said "Cowardly even."

"I carry out my missions no matter what means are required, that is all that matters." He slid his foot a few inches to the left and came into contact with Mega Man's. "Like so…"

Everyone gasped as Mega Man and the ninja vanished in a flash of light. "They teleported" Cut Man said in surprise

"Nah, ya think?" Fire Man said irritably

"Now is not the time for that" Dr. Light firmly interrupted "We have much work to do."

Mega Man was amazed to find that he was no longer in Light Labs but rather in the heart of a forest. The ninja took his opportunity, kicked Mega Man in the stomach and rolled away while his foe stumbled backwards.

"I have neutralized or wounded several of your friends. You are my main priority now so I brought us someplace a little more private."

Mega Man ducked as a shuriken flew within inches of his head. He fired back but the ninja was running towards him while dodging left and right around the plasma shots. Within seconds, he was in Mega Man's face with his katana on the way down. Mega Man's mind raced through the possible options and used the most likely.

"Cosmic Cyclone!"

The ninja was thrown backwards by the vortex and the winds knocked his sword right out of his hands. He hit the ground on his back, allowed the momentum to cause him to tumble backwards and landed on his feet. He hurled several shuriken at Mega Man but the cyclone was still in place. The throwing stars whirled around a few times before being flung in all directions. The ninja only just moved in time to avoid one and still the shoulder of his gi was ripped.

"More stolen techniques" the ninja said with a scowl

"Anything to accomplish the mission, isn't that what you said?"

"Indeed" the ninja said as he threw down a small object and was suddenly enshrouded in a cloud of smoke.

Mega Man, in the interest of conserving energy, dropped the tornado and tried to peer through the smoke. Failing this he hurled a Flame Fist to disperse it quickly. This worked but his opponent was already gone. Mega Man looked in all directions and spied him, sword back in hand, running towards him. Again the katana sliced through the air and there was a loud clash of metal on metal. For a moment, the ninja believed he had found his mark but then noticed that his sword was held in the grip of a Rolling Cutter

"I wasn't really sure that was going to work" Mega Man said "I'm glad it did."

"Not bad. I would expect nothing less…"

"From someone who defeated your comrades, yeah yeah I heard it from Juno."

He launched the Cutter and the force knocked the ninja stumbling back. Mega Man fired a plasma shot but the ninja jumped backwards over it. When he landed, he saw several thorns flying at him. He slashed them with his sword and came out the other side of the assault unscathed. He turned his attention back to Mega Man and was instantly rocked by a plasma shot to the chest.

"Curses!" he threw down another smoke bomb and this time Mega Man didn't see him anywhere when the cloud dispersed.

"This can't be good" he muttered as he kept his buster at the ready and continued to scan the terrain around him for his opponent.

Suddenly a shuriken struck him in his back. Since he was getting used to this sort of thing, he simply spun around and tried to shoot the ninja. He saw some movement in the trees above but his foe had already moved on. He pealed his ears and eyes as he very carefully tried to track the ninja's movements. A twig snapped loudly behind him and he spun with his buster at the ready. He saw a squirrel sitting on a low hanging limb innocently eating an acorn. Immediately another shuriken flew from a completely different direction and grazed his shoulder.

"Betrayed by squirrels" Mega Man muttered in anger "See if I ever call them cute again."

Another shuriken flew from the foliage above but Mega Man spotted it this time. He sidestepped it and fired a Rolling Cutter into the branches. His aim was true and the ninja tumbled to the ground as his perch was severed from the trunk. The ninja produced more throwing stars but they were blasted out of his hand.

"This is reminding me a bit of my clash with Ceres" Mega Man commented

"Only with a different outcome" the ninja responded as he drew his sword and raised his hand to throw down another smoke bomb. However he was struck with more plasma and slammed into the tree behind him. Mega Man rushed forward and pointed his buster into the ninja's face.

"I suppose it would be pointless to ask you to surrender."

"I do not fear deactivation"

At that moment, both robots were distracted as the forest was shaken by a tremor and flash of light erupted on the horizon. The ninja recovered first and grinned.

"It has begun. The refractors have fully charged the machinery and the purge has commenced. Of course, the radius of destruction will be small but it will grow."

"Shut up! This ends now!"

Unfortunately, the ninja had already started moving while Mega Man was talking. With a swift motion of his leg, he knocked Mega Man off balance and forced him to the ground. He smiled wickedly and raised his sword for a fatal blow. The blue hero fired another Rolling Cutter and sliced right through the ninja's wrist. His jaw dropped in shock and anger as he watched his own hand, still clutching the katana, fall uselessly to the ground.

"You…" the rest of his statement was drowned out by yet another plasma shot. By this point, the ninja was looking rather battered but he wasn't giving up the fight just yet. Mega Man was now climbing back to his feet but was knocked back by a kick to the face. He lay sprawled on his back as the ninja prepared to use his remaining hand to pepper him with shuriken.

Mega Man shot the ninja in the knee with a thorn. He staggered as he dropped the throwing stars while Mega Man sat up. He fired off a barrage of plasma shots which battered the surprised ninja. He fell to the ground and lay still.

"That was tough" Mega Man said as he stood up "but now it's…"

He gasped as a shuriken struck him in the chest. The ninja was trying to climb to his feet but his injuries were slowing him down. "You…can…not be allowed to win…" he growled

"For the world, I must" Mega Man said as he pointed his buster at the fallen ninja. However, it seemed that his foe was at the end of his strength after all. He fell limp on his back and his cut off arm wasn't sparking as much now.

"Perhaps you are victorious in this battle but what of the war. As I said, it has already begun."

The ninja closed his eyes and moved no more. Mega Man turned away and activated his radio "Dr. Light? Roll? Can anyone hear me?"

"Yes we can" Dr. Light said "After you were teleported away; we got the generator running and began trying to track you down. Are you alright?"

"I'll need a quick patch here and there but that's all we have time for. The grand purge has begun."

"We know" Roll cut in "Thankfully most people in the populated areas had already started evacuating. I never thought I'd say this but thank you Dr. Wily."

"Awesome"

"Even more awesome" she continued "I saved my work and the computer finished deciphering the information you downloaded."

"In that case, I have a date with the Master Unit."


	10. Little Asteroid of Horrors

Chapter 10: Little Asteroid of Horrors

"This is live footage of the destruction following the energy wave that ripped through the city not long ago. So far there are no confirmed casualties owing to the earlier evacuations but emergency workers continue to extract injured stragglers. We're told that this scene is being repeated in various places around the world, some urban and some deserted, and experts fear what future waves may bring."

Mega Man's fist slammed down on the lab table as the news report filled him with horror and rage. Dr. Light said "Please sit still Rock. I'm trying to work as fast as I can but it's difficult with you squirming."

"I know, I know but I just want to get out there and stop this."

"I agree but you can't go off without at least some basic repairs."

"Hmm, that can't be right can it?" Roll mused as she finished analyzing the Guardian data

"What's that?" Dr. Light asked as he put the finishing touches on a very impatient Mega Man.

"I've pinpointed the location of the Master Unit but the computer is indicating it's in outer space."

"Albert did say something about a mobile fortress."

"Yes but I can't find it on any radar or satellite records."

"Then it's shielded somehow" Mega Man said as he hopped of the table the instant Dr. Light let him "That won't stop us though. Get me up there and I'll do the rest."

Both Dr. Light and Roll looked at him with concern. "Rock" Dr. Light said "we really don't know what's up there. Are you sure you shouldn't wait for the others to be repaired…"

"We don't have time! We've been lucky so far but what if the next attack actually kills people? I have to go now and see if I can stop this madness."

Dr. Light's expression softened and he now had tears glistening in his eyes. He quickly wiped them away and started up the teleport system. "Our prayers go with you, my boy."

"Thanks" His determined expression transformed into a grin and he flashed them a thumbs up as the blue energy surrounded him "I'll see you soon!"

When he rematerialized, he was standing on a barren crater covered waste. The black sky was littered with dazzling stars and the Earth resembled a giant blue and green marble. Mega Man couldn't help but pause at the overwhelming experience of actually being in space. His mouth formed the word "Amazing" but no sound penetrated the vacuum.

Forcing himself to focus on his mission once more, Mega Man began to traverse the surface of the asteroid. He bounced across rocky terrain in the weakened gravity searching for a way in. Suddenly, he felt a painful surge of energy pass through his body and he was hurled forward into a large rock. He picked himself up and turned around just in time to receive another burst of energy in his chest. He was slammed hard against the rock again by a laser that had risen from a crater behind him.

He blasted said laser to pieces but spied others rising from the other craters around him. Mega Man jumped and narrowly avoided the beams. He landed behind the rock and it was quickly shattered by the many beams. Mega Man began picking them off as quickly as he could but was being attacked from behind as well. Working as fast as he could, he rotated on the spot and fired upon anything that moved. After a few minutes of this, the assault finally ceased.

 _And I'm not even inside yet_ he thought as he continued his search for an entrance. He checked the craters but they only contained the security equipment and didn't seem to lead inside. His thoughts were interrupted by a nearby explosion. He poked his head out of the crater he had been examining and saw the casing of a bomb that seemed to have narrowly missed him.

He looked up and saw a flock of bird bots rising from over a certain ridge. Surmising that they had to be coming from somewhere, Mega Man began to head in that direction while dodging bombs and blasting birds. He jumped and let the low gravity carry him right into the center of the flock. He spun and fired Harvest Thorns in all directions. When he landed he had taken most of the birds out and the few remaining were freaking out. This made it easier to use simple plasma to dispatch them.

Smiling at his own prowess, Mega man made his way to the edge of the ridge and saw a metal ledge beneath him, probably landing pad of some kind. He jumped down to it and faced a thick, metal door with a glass plate next to it. Remembering what Dr. Wily had said about needing the Guardians energy signatures, he pressed his hand to it. His body tingled with the absorbed powers of four robots and the door slid open. He stepped into the small room and the door slid shut behind him. He could tell that the gravity was far more earthlike in here and he could hear the second door opening in front of him.

"The gravity I can understand but why would robots need air? Oh well, at least I can talk again."

He was standing in a plain light grey corridor which stretched out of sight with several paths branching off from it. He took a few steps forward and the floor glowed under his foot. He jumped back on instinct and a laser missed him by inches. Another tile lit up and Mega Man leapt back to the air lock while feeling a laser graze his foot.

"Ow!" he looked at his smoking and slightly blackened foot and said "Well it's not too bad but I can't afford to do that again."

Mega Man summoned an Item 2 and surfed his way along the corridor. No more lasers fired now that he was no longer touching the floor. He tried to look down the side corridors as he sailed past but it wasn't always easy. What he did see didn't look important, just more nondescript hallways but it was hard to know which the right way to go was.

As he was pondering this, the end of the line suddenly came into view. The path stopped abruptly with a balcony and Mega Man slammed right into the rail. The momentum caused him to flip over and he grabbed on to keep from falling. He hung from the balcony railing by one hand and tried to figure out what to do but these thoughts were quickly interrupted as the rail surged with energy. Mega Man cried out in pain and let go.

He landed hard and was disorientated for a moment. "This place isn't friendly at all. Ugh, it feels like the floor's moving…wait a minute, it is!"

Indeed he had landed on a conveyor belt and he was quickly drawing near to a large spiked wheel that looked as if it could grind him into scrap. Mega Man rolled off of the belt and sighed with relief. Then he realized he was still moving but in the other direction. The whole room was crisscrossed with such belts and both walls were outfitted with the grinders. As if this wasn't bad enough, the moving floors were picking up speed.

Mega Man spotted a door on the far side of the room and he tried to summon another Item 2. However, as he tried to jump on it the belt carried him away and the board took off without him. He was dangerously close to the grinders and so he jumped/stumbled onto another belt. He was now being carried away from the grinders and prepared to jump the next step to the door but the belt reversed direction. He lost his balance and discovered he was now heading back to being scrap.

"Oh come on!"

With only seconds to act he summoned and leapt onto an Item 1. From the safety of the platform he leapt onto another Item 2 and sailed to safety. In seconds he had sailed to the door and it slid open as he approached. He surfed right through it before the Item disappeared out from under him. He tumbled to the floor but this floor was stationary.

He climbed to his feet and observed he was in yet another hallway. He started walking down it when suddenly a panel in the wall next to him opened up and a robot slid into view. It was sort of like a metal barrel and Mega Man was puzzled for a second before he realized that the curved panel was actually a shield. Said shield moved to the side and the robot behind it released a jet of flame that Mega Man had to jump to the side to dodge. He tried to fire back but the shield was already sliding back into place and his plasma simply bounced off.

As Mega Man was wondering what to do, the robot released another stream of fire. He ducked and fired back. The robot began lowering fire toward where Mega Man crouched but it was stopped the assault when the plasma connected. The shield slid back into position and Mega Man sprang forward in an attempt to get behind it. The robot spun as he passed and his plasma shots hit the shield again. Suddenly, he felt a surge of heat and pain from behind him and he saw another fire spewing, shield toting robot behind him.

"Ah nuts!" he exclaimed as he fell prostrate on the floor to get under the flames.

Now both robots were attacking and they were tilting their flame throwers down toward him. Mega Man rolled to the side and quickly stood up. The robots tried to adjust their aim but wound up blasting each other. The one Mega Man had already hit took worse damage from this exchange and fell uselessly to the floor. Mega Man quickly turned his attention to the other one and pummeled it with plasma shots. The shield slid back into place but it was heavily damaged.

He was waiting carefully for the robot to become vulnerable again but it did something new. It suddenly ran forward and slammed him with the shield. Mega Man was thrown back and he became entangled in the remains of the first robot. He managed to sit up and had to instantly shield his face from a stream of fire. His crossed arms grew painfully hot and he knew that he had to do something. He quickly dropped his buster arm and fired a few Rolling Cutters. The fire ceased and was replaced by smoke and sparks as the battered robot fell to the ground.

As he stood up, he saw more panels opening along the walls and knew that more robots were going to join him. Not wanting to deal with an onslaught of annoying fire breathers, Mega Man made a dash down the corridor with all the speed he could muster. He passed the robots but suddenly stopped cold. The air around him was thick with energy similar to static electricity and Mega Man was suspended in this field. He was unable to move except for how he rocked back and forth as the energy pulsed.

"Y-ye-yeouch" he stuttered "G-got to g-g-et out of he-re b-before I'm r-roast-ed."

He noticed a control panel in the wall ahead of him. He struggled to aim his buster and fired a thorn. It missed the panel due how the force field wouldn't let him stay still. He felt a burst of flame some very close to his backside and he took aim again. Doing his very best to time it correctly he fired and this time he connected with his target. The panel was destroyed in a shower of sparks and Mega Man was released.

"And now for you guys" he turned to face the robots as he whirled up a Cosmic Cyclone. The high powered winds created quite a storm in the cramped space and his enemies were sent flying. Rather than try to finish them off, Mega Man chose to conserve his energy and make a tactical retreat. The corridor ended in a dead end with branching paths and he chose the one on the right and passed through another door.

He was standing in a square room with no obvious exit. He turned around to try another way but the door was now locked. Several things happened at once; giant robotic worms began to slither out from panels in the walls while the ceiling began sprout spikes and lower itself toward the floor. Mega Man began blasting the worms but soon felt one coiling around him. He blasted it apart but was instantly attacked by two more. He tried to stay on his feet as they tangled around him. He glanced up and saw that the spiked ceiling was already half way down.

Mega Man glanced around the room and formed a mad plan. He threw the worms off of him using a cyclone and then dove for one of the panels the annoying bots had emerged from. Using a Rolling Cutter, he hacked and sliced until he had pulled the panel free. It was a tight squeeze but he managed to crawl inside. Holding his buster ahead of him as best he could, he continued to crawl forward. He saw another worm wiggling towards him and he blasted it. He shut his eyes against the blast and felt little bits of metal pelting him. When everything settled he continued forward, crawling over and around the ruined.

"Well, this is turning into a fine outing I must say" he muttered sarcastically "I just hope I can find that Master Unit soon."

After dealing with and crawling past the remains of several more worms, he finally emerged into a factory like room where the robots were being assembled. Various mechanical arms and devices were constructing all sorts of small robots. All of the bots were inactive at the moment but Mega Man quickly made his way for the door all the same. Suddenly, one of the construction arms grabbed him and lifted him off the ground. At the same time a pair of arms, with a saw blade and a welding torch respectively, approached him.

"This place simply isn't very friendly" Mega Man said as he shot a Rolling Cutter upward and sliced through the arm holding him. He dropped to the ground as the saw passed over his head. The torch went right for him and he had to slide under it to avoid the deadly cutting flame. "Still loving the new slide function" he said as he turned around and blasted the torch attachment right off the arm.

Before anything else could attack him, he threw himself at the door and it mercifully slid open. He was in yet another plain corridor with no indication of where to go. "Wish I had an E-Tank or something, my energy levels won't last forever. I'll just have to be extra careful from here on out."

He began walking forward very cautiously. He paused when he felt the floor shift under him. He jumped forward as the section of floor he had just been standing on shot up and slammed into the ceiling. As he was watching this, the wall next to him began to move and a he fell backwards to avoid being crushed by the horizontal column. He crab crawled his way out from under it but then did a back flip as a piece of ceiling shot downwards at him.

"How does anyone actually get around these places?" he thought aloud as he slid under more columns from the walls "Good thing Dr. Wily has given me a bit of practice with these not-so-fun houses."

Several near misses later, he emerged in a crossroads with corridors branching off to the left and right as well as continuing onwards. At the end of the left hand corridor he spied a door with a security panel on it, similar to the one on the air lock. He began moving in this direction on the lookout for any more traps or enemy robots. After a few steps he paused and then summoned an Item 2.

"Better safe than sorry" he said as he traversed the corridor.

He arrived at the door and placed his hand to the panel. Again, he felt a strange tingle and system reacted to his absorbed data. He entered what turned out to be an elevator which immediately began moving down. He took stock of his energy levels again and realized he had used up all of his Item function.

"Hopefully I'm finally done with the traps"

After he said this, the doors opened and he stepped into a large round room with a very high ceiling. In the center of the room, a very large multicolored refractor hovered over a bank of computers and machines. Above this was a large black orb with thick black wires connecting it to the machinery above and below. A large red eye, similar to the eye on many of the ancient robots he'd faced, glowed on the sphere's front. A series of platforms ran up the sides of the circular room with strange energy pylons on them.

The red eye glowed brighter and a mechanical voice said "We meet at last Mega Man. I am the Master Unit over the planet Earth."

"We don't have a master and we certainly don't want you!" He fired at the sphere but his plasma shot was blocked by a force field.

"I'm afraid that things will not be that simple. I am impressed that you made it through my fortress. Its sole function is to protect me while I oversee the activities of those under my command."

"I've had some experience with fortresses before."

"It is now time for you to experience death, Mega Man."

As it spoke, the room began to rumble slightly as a large panel slid open in the floor. Mega Man gasped as Juno's head rose through the opening and his jaw dropped lower as the rest of his him came into view. Juno's head was now attached to a large silver torso supported by what resembled a giant spine. This was on a flat, heavy base and two massive arms hovered at his sides.

Juno smiled as this new body glided around the room and towards Mega Man. "We meet again my blue friend."

"I thought I finished you off!"

"Thought is the operative word here. I survived and am now one with the Master Unit's systems. I intend to use every function and power available to me to destroy you."


	11. Battle for the Planet

Chapter 11: Battle for the Planet

The large robot that was now Juno leapt through the air with surprising agility and slammed the ground near Mega Man. The floor was rocked by tremors and the hero bounced like a rag doll. Juno aimed one of the massive arms at Mega Man and released a large ball of fire. Mega Man had half a second to roll into a ball and endure the flames. Thankfully his armored body survived the inferno intact but not undamaged. He then ran like heck as Juno jumped again and tried to crush him.

Mega Man wobbled as the tremors rolled but he managed to stay on his feet. He spun around and fired several plasma shots. Juno raised one arm in front of his head as a shield while the other arm aimed at Mega Man. A tornado erupted from the end and slammed a stunned Mega Man into a wall. A second later his eyes bulged and he had to duck under a stream of Harvest Thorns.

"And you got onto me for using stolen powers."

"I believe the Earth phrase is 'If you can't beat them, join them.' My siblings, my master, and I all fight as one."

As Juno said this he nailed Mega Man with a large Hydro Bullet. Both the eye on the Master Unit and the section of floor beneath Mega Man began to glow. The glowing patch of floor then surged with electricity and the water doubled the effect. Mega Man screamed as the energy ripped through him. At the same time Juno glided toward him and slammed him to the ground with one of those powerful arms.

"I was wondering how Pallas' power would be useful" Mega Man muttered as he leapt onto Juno's base platform. He activated his own cyclone power and Juno's torso and head were in the center of the vortex.

"My own original power turned against me" Juno remarked as he winced under the assault "Ironic but not terribly effective."

"I'll take anything that chips away at you."

Juno's smile returned as he said "Yes chip away while I crush."

Juno created his own cyclone, in a more traditional style this time, and Mega Man was lifted into the swirling currents. He whirled around and around before being thrown toward the center of the room. He slammed into what he thought was solid air before remembering the Master Unit's barrier.

"My real goal should be disabling that" he said to himself "I need to shut this whole place down."

Mega Man dodged another fire ball and fired a thorn at Juno's head. The large robot ducked to avoid the missile which proceeded to embed itself in one of the energy pylons on a lower platform. The glass column cracked, sparked, and then exploded while the Master Unit's barrier flickered. Mega Man received another jolt from the floor and Juno swiped at him those massive arms. The blow knocked him across the room but Mega Man was smiling to himself.

"They didn't like that, did they? It seems those things are connected to the barrier."

Instead of aiming for Juno again, Mega Man turned towards the nearest pylon and fired at it. The glass cracked but Mega Man was jolted by another Juno body slam before he could finish the job. He turned towards Juno and fired several Flame Fists. The large enemy grunted and jumped at him again. Mega Man slid under Juno and outran most of the shockwaves. He was shaken but still on his feet and firing a thorn at another pylon. A thorn from Juno intercepted Mega Man's missile and knocked it off course.

"You are a skilled" Juno said "but ultimately inferior."

"I've heard that before and yet I'm the one still here."

Another wave of electricity surged through him as Juno soaked him to make it worse. The Master Unit intoned "You have limited energy while our stores are still strong. You also act on flawed logic; we will prevail."

"It's not flawed logic to care about people."

"There is no point in arguing with a corpse"

By this point Juno had drawn near again and Mega Man was sucking into another cyclone. Rather than being flung away this time, he spun right into Juno's outstretched arm. His already battered body was rocked by the impact. However, he was close enough to Juno's head to get in a solid plasma shot. Juno screamed and dropped Mega Man who immediately used a thorn to finish off one of the pylons. Again, the barrier flickered and both Juno and his master grunted in frustration.

Juno raced toward Mega Man while half the floor lit up. Just as the electricity surged, Mega Man jumped onto Juno's base and avoided the shock. At the same time, he fired upwards into Juno's main body with as much fire power as he could muster. Another cyclone was summoned to get rid of Mega Man but the blue robot did his best to take advantage of this. As he was carried into the air, he fired inwards at Juno which not only damaged his foe but propelled to the outer edges of the vortex more or less on his terms.

The plan worked and Mega Man was flung onto one of the platforms. He immediately began blasting the nearest pylon and destroyed it within seconds. He started running to avoid Juno's retaliation and a pylon on the other side of the room came into view. He took the opportunity to fire a thorn and destroy it. The whole platform lit up with a surge of electricity and Mega Man jumped to the ground to avoid the worst of it.

"Protect me Juno!" the Master Unit shouted "That is your function!"

"Yes Master!"

Mega Man was already trying to find a decent firing position for another pylon when Juno leapt at him and caused another quake. Mega Man was thrown off his feet and happened to roll just beyond some large thorns that hit the ground right next to him. Mega Man fired back with some of his own and again Juno was forced to block. Mega Man turned and fired on the pylon and shattered it.

"Just a couple left" he said with a smile

Mega Man was suddenly blasted by a powerful laser and sent flying across the room. He managed to see that it had come from the red eye on the Master Unit. Mega Man quickly fired back and he saw that that his shot actually passed through the barrier and grazed the large orb. Mega Man fired again but the barrier was back in place. He was too focused on this new development and only at the last second noticed the fire ball heading for him. He rolled to the side but was grazed by the flames.

"Your stamina and endurance are impressive" Juno said "but you must be running low on energy. This battle is already decided."

"Just be quiet" Mega Man said as he fired a Rolling Cutter at the spine-like structure supporting Juno's torso and the blade embedded itself between two vertebrae. He tried to move sparks flared from the blade's location.

"That is…inconvenient" Juno said with a wince

"I will fry that blue nuisance" the Master Unit intoned as the whole floor blazed with energy but again Mega Man was standing on Juno's base as a shield. He spied another pylon and blasted it mercilessly. In seconds, the column was reduced to dust and the barrier flickered worse than before. Juno was thrashing about trying to throw Mega Man onto the electrified floor and then resorted to another cyclone. Mega Man threw his arms around the "spine" and held on as tightly as he could.

After a minute or two, the winds died down and Mega Man immediately began firing up at the head. Juno swiveled around and another red laser from the Master Unit knocked Mega Man off of the base and onto the electrified floor. He screamed and tried to stand up. Juno swiped at him with a powerful arm and sent him bouncing across the room. Each moment of contact with the floor brought another gasp as the deadly energy did its work.

He noticed the last intact pylon was in sight. Thinking fast Mega Man summoned a cyclone and poured as much energy as he could spare into it. Not only did the vortex deflect Juno's attacks but it lifted him off the ground and he took careful aim at the pylon before turning off the tornado. He fired immediately and destroyed the last bastion of the barrier.

He fell back onto the sparking floor and winced as his body twitched. He took aim at the Master Unit but was nearly smashed by a leaping Juno. Mega Man bounced near the large refractor under the Master Unit and he desperately climbed onto one of the attached consoles. The electricity was not conducting through this machinery and he was granted a reprieve from constant electrocution.

"I find it hard to believe that you are still functioning" Juno commented

"Actually so do I" Mega Man replied. His body certainly looked like it had gone through the mill and some of his joints were getting a little stiff. "It's not game over yet though."

Juno scowled but didn't do anything. Mega Man smiled and said "What? Are you afraid of damaging something? Afraid you'll hurt your Master or somehow foul up his plans?"

Juno glanced up at the orb and inquired "What should I do?"

"Destroy him…now!" As he said the last word, a wave of energy erupted from the refractor and knocked Mega Man off of his perch. Juno trapped Mega Man between his arms and lifted him into the air. Mega Man's arms were pinned to his side meaning he couldn't use this moment to attack. Juno turned and sped towards a wall and then proceeded to slam Mega Man into it. He then whirled around and tossed Mega Man across the room. The blue robot bounced off of the wall and landed again on the floor.

The blue robot pointed his buster upwards and rapidly blasted the orb above. The Master Unit screamed and fired another eye beam. Mega Man rolled to the side and fired a thorn at the eye. Another monstrous scream filled the room as the eye was punctured. Mega Man was instantly consumed by flames as Juno fired upon him. Juno leapt at him in a rage and Mega Man jumped right before the large foe landed. The plan worked and again Mega Man was standing on the base.

"You are like a blue cockroach!" Juno screamed as Mega Man fired several thorns upwards with a few plasma shots mixed in for good measure. Juno cried out and twitched while Mega Man took the opportunity to turn upon the Master Unit again. He fired several Rolling Cutters at the black support cables and sliced through them. The orb wobbled badly and flashed with surging energy.

"No…I can not be destroyed! Juno, save me!"

A side effect of the recent damage was that the floor stopped surging with electricity. Mega Man leapt off of Juno, summoned the very reserves of his energy, and began to run in circles around the large robot. This allowed him to stay ahead of Juno's attacks and fire back in return. Juno's already damaged body was getting pummeled. In another burst of inspiration, Mega Man began firing Rolling Cutters at the vertebrae of the spine.

"I don't know why I didn't think of this strategy sooner. I guess it's true that desperation is a beautiful thing."

The blades sliced and hacked at Juno's massive body and made quick work of the enraged and damaged robot. He fell to pieces in a series of small explosions and his head landed near Mega Man.

"Forgive me Master…" it said before falling quiet and motionless.

The Master Unit growled in anger and released another energy wave from the refractor. Mega Man ducked behind Juno's remains and was unharmed. He popped up and fired a combo of plasma and cutters as quickly as he could before having to duck before another wave. The Master Unit was now hanging precariously by a few cables and looking worse for the wear.

"You will be eliminated one way or another" it intoned "It was I who directed the flow of energy here and in my other outposts. That flow has been disrupted and is feeding back into the reactors. Good bye Mega Man."

Mega Man gasped and began dragging himself to the elevator as quickly as he could. He didn't know if he could really make it out in time but his family was counting on him to try. The room was beginning to vibrate and the refractor was spinning and flashing more and more erratically. He felt like he was in an earthquake by the time he was slamming the elevator call button.

As the lift doors slid shut behind him, there was a series of earsplitting booms and he was tossed around like a rag doll. He reached the end of his strength and the world went black.


	12. Homecoming

Chapter 12: Homecoming

"I think he moved on his own"

"Probably a reflex but it's hard to say."

"No, I believe that Roll is right. We weren't even working on that arm when his finger moved."

"I understand how you want that to be true Thomas but don't get your hopes up just yet."

Mega Man wasn't sure where he was or what was happening. His last memory was entering the elevator on the asteroid and then all was blackness. What had transpired since and why he heard this mix of voices was a mystery. He thought something must be wrong with him because one of the voices sounded like Dr. Wily.

"It's a wonder that he's only this badly damaged" one of the voices remarked

"A testament to your genius Thomas"

"It sounds a bit odd to hear that from you considering…but now's not the time for such things."

"Indeed, this is delicate work."

"Oh Rock…" was all the voice of Roll said in a worried tone

All was silent for about half a minute before something clicked and his functions started restoring. His hearing was back at full capacity and he found he could open his eyes. Dr. Light was leaning over him with tools in his hands and Dr. Wily, still in a prison uniform, was standing near him. Both men looked overjoyed when they noticed that he was looking at them and Roll pushed her way into view.

"Rock, are you ok?"

"Um…I'm not really sure. What's going on?"

"We're patching you up after your latest adventure" Dr. Light said "I was afraid we'd lost you my boy."

"You might have without my help" Dr. Wily said

"True Albert, very true, and I'm eternally grateful."

Mega Man said "I have questions. First of all what is Dr. Wily doing here and not in jail?"

"When the destruction caused by the refractors started, the city was hit fairly hard" Dr. Wily explained "The jail was the last to be evacuated and the prisoners just scattered. In the panic and confusion, I decided to come here. Among other things, I was curious how things were progressing in stopping the trouble."

"Well I think it's safe to say it's over" Mega Man proceeded to give a quick overview of his recent adventure while Dr. Light continued his repairs "And then I guess the place blew up. The Master Unit talked like it was the end for him and me."

"I do believe that elevator you were in might have shielded you from most of the explosion" Dr. Light remarked "One must always admire quality construction."

"We were so worried Rock" Roll cut in "Suddenly all the craziness just stopped and we were sure you were to thank but we couldn't contact you. We had no idea what happened, it was horrible. Then Dr. Wily turned up and, I'll admit, I wasn't thrilled to have him here. However when he heard what was going on he went straight for the computers and did…well something…and he was able to get a read on a very faint signal. Then we teleported you home and you were a wreck but we've been working really hard to patch you up."

"Wow" Mega Man said "thanks Dr. Wily."

"Don't mention it" the scientist responded "let's just say I didn't want to lose such a worthy foe."

"If you keep on like you've been acting, we may not be foes anymore" Mega Man replied

Dr. Wily didn't say anything but simply passed Dr. Light the tool he was reaching for. "There now" Dr. Light said "you're not quite at 100% but you should be able to sit up."

He did so and stretched his limbs. "I'll need a few dents buffed out, that's for sure."

"I'm afraid there's a lot of repair work to be done and not just here. This alien system caused a fair amount of damage to rural and urban areas alike before going up in smoke."

"Up in smoke? Did the bases down here explode as well?"

"It's still too early to truly assess what has happened but it would appear that at least some of the refractor sites have totally collapsed."

"Yikes…talk about a power surge."

"Indeed."

"How about the people living in the damage areas?" Mega Man asked with slight panic

"Relax" Dr. Wily said "As we've covered before, my invaluable information allowed for a major evacuation project. Hey, look at that, I'm a hero."

"It will be interesting to see the reactions of the public, to say the least" Dr. Light said

This statement was followed by a pounding on the door and the voice of Agent Stern calling out "This is the police. We know you're in there Wily."

"Ah there's a grateful ray of sunshine right now" Dr. Wily said as Stern and some fellow cops entered.

"I thought you might be hiding out here"

"Who's hiding? Seeing as there was no longer a jail to keep me safe I came to check on an old friend."

"And he was a great help in rescuing and restoring Rock" Dr. Light chimed in "Rock was the one who stopped the chaos."

"Well that's another good deed to add to the doctor's recent list" Stern said "We'll still have to take in until the courts decide different."

"Fair enough" Dr. Wily said as he allowed himself to be cuffed. Mega Man had mixed feelings as he watched these proceedings and it seemed that Dr. Light did as well.

"However brief it was nice to be working beside you again Albert."

"It was nice Thomas. Perhaps we'll get another chance someday."

Dr. Wily was led to a waiting squad car and the Light family watched as he was taken away to a new holding facility. As the cars vanished from sight, Mega Man contemplated the strange events that had led to this moment. His thoughts then turned to the uncertain events that still lay ahead in the days to come.

* * *

 **And...the end! I hope everyone enjoyed it. This story was harder to write than I expected but still fun. It served more than one purpose; it set the stage for next chapter in the Mega Man saga and it was my tribute to Super Adventure Rockman. I always wondered if I would actually write that game but seeing as I'm not as familiar with it as I'd like and Archie comics already used it at this point in the story, I figured that an original story would be worth a try. See you guys later!**


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